The Long Road Home
by Er-BearG32
Summary: Part 30 Rated T for suicide.
1. Chapters 1-11

_Written by: CI and KP_

"What are you talking about, Sam?" Andrew asked with a heavy sigh as he wrapped his arm around his best friend's shoulders and felt her lean into him in defeat.

"Patrick is headed for the city and the streets, my friends," the oldest angel explained grimly,

"And there is plenty of danger there, especially lately. Runaway children have been found murdered the last few weeks and so far they have no suspects. Patrick Sullivan is walking right into that scenario."

"He isn't going to listen to us, Sam," Kevin spoke up nervously,

"He hasn't listened to any of us the last few weeks."

"No, he hasn't," Sam agreed, sitting down in a vacant chair,

"And he is pretty upset with angels right now, but he won't know you as angels once you find him."

"What are you saying?" Andrew asked, not sure if he liked where this was going.

"Tomorrow morning you three will be transformed into runaway children and on the streets yourselves, so you can gain his trust. This assignment won't be easy, especially with winter approaching and the danger involved, but that boy needs to learn to appreciate what he has, before he loses his life out there."

Monica looked up in near horror at what Sam was suggesting, as being transformed in this way was not something new to her. She had spent 13 years as a human child many years ago and the one thing that stayed with her was the feeling of helplessness that had consumed her, especially when an adult took a notion to try to hurt her. But before she could object, Andrew spoke up, his voice harsher than she could remember hearing it for some time.

"Forget it, Sam," He snapped, his green eyes filled with defiance,

"I am not leading them into that. I won't."

"I'm afraid you have no choice, Andrew," Sam replied, keeping his voice as calm as he could. Under different circumstances, he most likely would have given his own former charge a piece of his mind, but he knew where the anger was coming from, so he settled on being firm instead,

"By tomorrow, none of you will be here at the Sullivan's; you'll be...out there somewhere."

"You're making this sound like we're supposed to have FUN out there, Sam!" Andrew snapped back, his green eyes shooting dagers,

"Haven't we all been through enough this last month and a half?"

Cringing slightly at his supervisor's tone, Kevin just lowered his head and waited until the Angel's Angel replied.

"Yes, I say that you have, but this is not my choice, Andrew; it's the Father's and you're going to abide by His plan and do as He says," Sam firmly replied, his stern eyes never leaving Andrew's.

"Sam, I am responsible for Kevin and Monica's well being, and I can't believe you are asking this of me," Andrew argued.

"Patrick needs help, Andrew. It's plain and simple and you three are the ones to give it to him," Sam replied as patiently as he could.

"Not like this," The supervising angel replied firmly,

"It's one thing to be human, but human and children is too much. Mon' went through that years ago and I have no desire to see it happen again to her or to Kevin! And how am I supposed to take care of them when I'm not myself either?"

"Andrew, the Father will take care of all of you, you know that," The Angel's Angel replied,

"This has to be done. There are no negotiations unless you plan on walking off this assignment."

"Why can't Tess do this instead?" Monica spoke up wearily as she continued leaning against her best friend, avoiding Sam's eyes as she spoke.

Silence passed at the Irish angel's question before Sam sighed heavily and lowered his head. He remained silent for a few moments before he answered as best he could,

"Tess...Tess is currently in God's Country, and you know that's not possible." A look of disappointment in the supervisor over her attitude earlier that week crossed his mahogany face before he faced the three angels again, and then turned to Philip for the first time,

"You'll be remaining here at the Sullivan's until further notice, Philip." As the newest angel nodded his head sollemly, Sam turned back to the other three,

"Andrew, you have two choices here right now...you can either walk off the assignment right now, or you can stay and be patient until it gets resolved. It's up to you, son."

Andrew was silent for a moment as he felt all eyes in the room upon him,

"Can you give me till morning, Sam? I need to talk to my charges."

Nodding his head in agreement, Sam rose to his feet,

"That sounds like a good idea. The three of you need to be on the same page with this," He looked at the three angels for a moment, almost chucking at the fact that Kevin looked intrigued, though Andrew and Monica looked anything but that,

"I know this has been a long, hard assignment for you three and I understand your concerns, Andrew, but in light of everything you especially have gone through the last few weeks, you know you have to trust the Father in all things. I'll see you in the morning."

As Sam vanished, Andrew sighed as he saw his best friend lean forward, her head in her hands and he reached to gently rub her back, sensing her discouragement as he felt it too,

"What do you guys think?" He asked softly.

"I think it sounds kinda cool, Simba," Kevin responded, trying to keep his enthusiasm under control,

"I've never gotten to do anything like this before."

"Mon' and I have," Andrew replied quietly with a heavy sigh as he removed his hand from his best friend's back and ran shaky fingers through his blonde hair,

"Sometimes it can be fun, but...the last time Monica had to do something like this, it lasted for 13 years, Kevin."

Kevin's eyes widened in shock as he repeated,

"Thirteen YEARS?"

Nodding his head, Andrew met his youngest charge's brown eyes steadily,

"You know that she was the daughter of Carol and Patrick Hendrickson, before Cindy or her twin sister were born, and the assignment lasted for 13 long years." A tiny smile appeared on his face for a a brief moment as he thought about that time,

"Alot of the things that occurred during then I'll always remember...having a child-like Cupcake on my hands was really neat, and I grew to love her even more, you know?"

Lifting her auburn head and looking over at her two friends, Monica's face paled as she whispered shakily,

"How am I going to be able to do this again, Andrew? How?" Seeing the helpless look in his frustrated green eyes, the Irish angel drew in a deep breath,

"Are you even willing to do this, Andy?"

Drawing in a shaky breath, the older angel lowered his head and ran a hand over his face as he thought about her question long and hard,

"I so want to just walk off of this assignment and never return, to be honest with you, Angel Girl...but I know that would disappoint the Father."

"But hey, at least we'll all be together, Simba," Kevin tried to lighten the mood a bit as he took a seat on the other side of his friend and rested a hand on his shoulder,

"It's not like any of us are gonna have to go through it alone."

"You're right, Kev'," Andrew said with a deep sigh and a slight nod of his head,  
"And we can't just leave Patrick out there. Eventually, he is going to cool off and his stubborn pride is going to keep him out there. He needs us on this one and so do Brady and Cindy and the girls. As much as I don't like the idea, I don't see much of a choice and with what the Father did for Philip and I yesterday…I can't say no."

"I can't wait to see you guys as munchkins," Kevin chuckled, feeling relieved now that the decision had been made.

Andrew forced a smile as he turned back to his best friend, watching worriedly as she rose to her feet,  
"Angel Girl?"

Turning to face him, the weary angel met his eyes with her own,  
"You know I won't walk off the case, Andrew…I wouldn't do that to you or to the Father, but to say I'm happy about this would be a stretch. I just feel a little overwhelmed right now…we just spent three weeks watching you in agonizing pain from this assignment, and I'm not sure…I'm not sure I can handle anything else going wrong…"

"Sweetie, I understand-."

"I know you do," She whispered as a tear ran down her cheek,  
"I just spent three weeks feeling helpless to help you and knowing that I may wind up feeling that helpless again in a child's human form…what am I supposed to do if someone tries to hurt either of you?"

"God is always there, little angel," Philip reminded her gently.

She lowered her head as more tears filled her eyes,  
"I know, but He was there when that man set that house on fire too and my best friend along with it…I'm sorry…" She uttered before turning and hurrying upstairs.

As Philip started to rise to his feet to follow her, Andrew stopped him gently,  
"She needs a little time, then I'll talk to her. She has valid fears about this and I have the same ones," He sighed heavily and ran a hand over his face, knowing his best friend was tired right down to soul right now as they all were after the last six weeks of seemingly one battle after another. The problem was, he didn't know what to do to renew any of their spirits by morning.

"Andrew, where are we going?" Monica asked several hours later after dinner at the Sullivan's, as the two angels plus Kevin and Carla, had pilled into Andrew's car and "went for a drive", as her best friend had put it.

Glancing at Carla and Kevin in the review mirror and offering them a small smile, as the two youner angels knew what he had planned, Andrew glanced over at his best friend and replied,

"You'll find out in a few more minutes, Angel Girl." He watched out of the corner of his eye as Monica sighed softly before leaning back in the passenger seat and looking up at the roof of the car,

"I thought that we all needed a little bit of time to relax before we head off for this new assignment, and I have an idea..."

"And a good one at that, Andrew," Carla remarked with a smile,

"You three could use to burn off a little pent up frustration and I'm just glad to have been invited along."

"Yeah, we took pity on you," Kevin remarked teasingly and was rewarded with an elbow in the ribs, which in turn caused him to begin to tickle the blond angel.

Andrew chuckled, hearing the squeals of laughter coming from the backseat,

"Now don't kill each other before we get there," He warned playfully, before feeling Monica's hand on his arm as he glanced over at her.

"I'm sorry I'm in such a bad mood," She said softly as the other two angels continued their banter in the backseat,

"The Father finally healed you and I'm so happy about that…it's just a little hard to see right now is all."

Nodding his head in understanding, Andrew reached for her hand and pressed it to his lips in a gentle kiss,

"I completely understand, sweetheart, and you have no reason to apologize." Shooting a loving look her way, he smiled as he felt her lean into him and rest her head on his shoulder as he continued to drive.

"I'm still sorry, though," The Irish angel whispered softly,

"I was acting like I was the only one who was frustrated about this, when I know that you're not happy about it either..."

"That's why I'm taking you someplace where you can relax the rest of the evening, little girl," Andrew whispered back as he pulled up to a stop sign and gently kissed the top of her head,

"And we're going to have fun, even if I have to tickle you to death to make you have fun." He smiled to himself as he heard a chuckle escape her and felt her hook her arms through his as she snuggled closer to him.

"Hey, Andrew, are we there yet?" Kevin called up from the backseat.

The oldest angel rolled his eyes as he shook his head,

"I forgot what taking road trips with him was like," He remarked softly, causing another giggle from his best friend as he pulled into the parking lot of the club,

"Why, yes we are, Wonder Boy."

Still teasing with Carla, the two youngest angels got out of the car as Carla broke into a run to get away from Kevin's tickling as the youngest angel bolted off after her. Both of the older angels laughed as they got out of the car and Andrew immediately reached for Monica's hand as they followed the other two inside.

Kevin and Carla had already found them a table near the dance floor and were already ordering something to drink when Andrew and Monica arrived not far behind them.

"You're behaving, right Kev?" Andrew asked his sometimes mischievous youngest charge with a wink.

"Don't I always behave, Simba?" Kevin smirked as the waitress at their table took the rest of their orders and walked away,

"Have I ever had a moment in my existence where I don't behave?"

"I can think of quite a few," Carla winked as she nudged the youngest angel in the ribs.

As the two youngest angels continued going at it across the table, Andrew laid his hand over his dearest friend's and waited until she turned his way before he held his hand out to here,

"May I have this dance, Angel Girl?" He watched as Monica's eyes blurred with tears as she nodded her head eagerly and he pulled her gently to her feet and lead her out to the dance floor.

Feeling Andrew's arm encircle her waist as he held their other joined hands close to his heart, Monica rested her head against his shoulder as the song began to play. Closing her eyes, she listened to the lyrics.

_There is a child inside my heart tonight._

_No one can see that child but you._

_If I hold on to you too tight,_

_You understand. You hold me, too._

_You are the one who reaches through_

_The dark._

_When Im afraid, you warm the air._

_And when I close my eyes to sleep,_

_You are my peace. You are my prayer._

_You are my home._

_You make me strong._

_And in this world of strangers,_

_I belong to someone._

_You are all I know._

_Youre all I have._

_I wont let go._

_Others may leave, but you will still be there,_

_Touching the tears that fill my eyes._

_When I am lost, you are my light._

_You are the love, that never dies._

_You are my home._

_You make me strong._

_And in this world of strangers,_

_I belong to someone._

_You are all I know._

_Youre all I have. I need you so._

_I will not walk away from you!_

_I will not let you go!_

_Youre the only home Ill ever know!_

_You are my home!_

_You make me strong!_

_And in this world of strangers,_

_I belong to someone!_

_You are all I know!_

_Youre all I have._

_I need you so._

_I wont let go_

_You are my home_

As the song gave way to the next one, Andrew continued to sway gently with his dearest friend in his arms. He had not missed the tears that had escaped her eyes as they had listened to the lyrics and he as well blinked back tears at the song that reminded him so much of what they shared and had shared over the years. This was one of those times when he wished that there were words to express what he was feeling for his gentle friend, especially after the last three weeks when she had almost continuously been by his side,

"You know I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe in the upcoming weeks, Angel Girl," He whispered hoarsely, his emotions rising to the surface.

Nodding her head against his strong chest as she moved her fingers through her best friend's silky blonde hair, the little Irish angel whispered hoarsely,

"I know you will. With all my heart..."

Even as the next song gave way to a faster beat, Monica and Andrew continued to sway slowly to the music, both angel's eyes closed and they didn't even notice that Carla and Kevin had just now gotten out onto the dance floor as well. Leaning his chin against the Irish angel's head, Andrew whispered softly so that only she could hear,

"I'll never let you go, Angel Girl. I cross my heart I will never let you go."

The first time Andrew was aware of the following morning was that he was cold. Shivering to be exact and the ground felt hard and cold beneath him. He sat up quickly, his heart racing as he tried to remain calm as he looked down at himself.

The transformation had happened.

He was surprised it had occurred so quickly, though he had told the Father last night prior to falling asleep that the three of them were willing and ready to accept this assignment. Still this was a rude awakening. He ran a trembling hand over his face, as he surveyed his situation. His body seemed awkward and lanky, much like Patrick's at this age, so he decided he must resemble a 14-year-old teenage boy. He was also aware of the fact that his hair was a bit longer, indicating to those unaware that he had been on the streets for some time. He was dressed in faded and worn blue jeans and a green sweater that was also well worn at the elbows. Drawing in a shaky breath, as he heard a slight whimper beside of him, he dared to take a look at his two charges.

"A-Andrew..." A child-like voice sounded first, and Andrew gulped as he realized that must be Kevin's voice. Turning around slightly as he brushed the hair out of his face, the angel covered his mouth with his hand as he took a look at his youngest charge. Kevin appeared alot shorter then him, almost looking to be 9 or 10 years old; his face was dirty and brown hair almost reached his shoulders. He was dressed in a pair of blue jean overalls, and a blue t-shirt underneath. A torn jean jacket with barely any buttons was wrapped around his shoulders and the shoes he were had many holes in the toes.

"Simba...Kevin spoke for the first time and was surprised at the real change in his voice,

"That's really you, isn't it...?"

"Afraid so, Wonder Boy," He replied, trying to remain calm as he watched Kevin take in his new childlike form.

Looking up, he grinned, unable to hide his excitement at something new to him,

"Wow, this is cool! Look how short I am!"

Andrew almost had to chuckle, despite the situation, over his youngest charge's enthusiasm, even though he didn't feel it himself,

"And you wanted to see us as Munchkins?" He teased with a sigh.

Kevin's smile softened then, as he looked down at the remaining angel, who was still asleep, though shivering slightly,

"I think I'm still an inch taller than Cupcake though…"

Andrew finally allowed his green eyes to fall on his best friend and he actually felt glad that at least this sight was familiar to him as he felt a tug at his heart. Figuring her human form was slightly older than Kevin's, though slightly smaller; Andrew gazed down at the angel who was curled up tightly for warmth purposes. Dressed in a blue and pink pinafore that was well worn and dirty, with a tattered pink and white scarf around her shoulders, Monica's hair was longer than it had been in some years, part of it tied back in a slightly messy ponytail, and looked much as she had when she had been the Hendrickson's daughter.

Feeling shaky on his feet, Andrew knelt down next to his best friend and reached a slightly grimy hand out to touch her cold cheek. Feeling her shiver and then murmur in her sleep, the older human angel sucked in a sharp breath as he watched her open her dark eyes and tried to focus on him. Almost immediately as her eyes adjusted on him, Andrew felt a shiver run up and down his spine as she jerked awake and gasped,

"Andrew?!"

Exchanging a look with Kevin, Andrew realized just then that the beautiful Irish accent was completely gone, and in its place was just a normal voice of that of a 12-year old girl,

"It's me, Mon'..." The human angel replied in a whisper as he watched her look down at herself and then over at Kevin.

Looking around her, Monica swallowed hard, realizing what had already happened as she tried to adjust to this situation. Human and a child had always made her feel vulnerable, and now was no exception. Taking in the appearances of Kevin and her best friend, she sighed heavily,

"I guess this is it, huh?"

Kevin chuckled softly as he shook his head,

"Your voice sounds weird like that, Cupcake, but I guess the Father didn't want it to give you away once we find Patrick."

Sitting up, she shivered as she drew her knees up to her chest for warmth,

"I guess…" She replied softly, trying to also get used to the sound of her own voice, wishing that something about herself felt familiar.

"Well, I'm starved," Kevin announced, as he stretched sleepily,

"What fridge do we raid?"

"I'm afraid it doesn't work like that, Kev," Andrew replied gently, looking over at the youngest angel,

"We have to find food and before we do, I think we need to set a few ground rules between us for the duration of this assignment, as there is danger involved."

"What kind of danger?" Kevin asked as the threesome took a seat on the hard ground and the two younger angels looked at Andrew.

With a slightly shaky sigh, Andrew wrapped his own arms around his knees and looked at each of his charges and friends, still trying to come to grips with the changes in all of them,

"There's lots of gangs on these streets, as well as drugs. The Father has told me that children have been victims of murder around this area and we've got to be extremely cautious. Which means that the three of us have got to stick together, from the time we get up to the time we go to sleep...we all look more human then ever before and we're easy targets, just like all the other runaways around here..."

"Do you think we'll find Paddy at all, Andy?" Monica whispered, her voice trembling as she met her best friend's eyes with her own.

"Yes, sweetie, I think we will eventually, though it might take time. The Father didn't put us out here to not find him, but he may still have some money in his pocket, so it may take until the money runs out for the trail to get warm." Andrew replied patiently. Noticing her miserable expression, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders as he continued speaking,

"For all intent and purpose, we are now a family, in as true of the sense of the word as we can come. We look out for each other and no one wanders off alone."

"So how do we eat?" Kevin asked, this being a very serious point for him with his appetite.

"Sometimes restaurants will give out food to the homeless," Andrew replied steadily,

"Other times it may be a matter of digging through trashcans," Seeing the disgusted look on Kevin's face, he continued once more,

"I know this is a bit on the exciting side for you, Wonder Boy, but this is a very real and very dangerous situation. We're going to be faced with problems we've never been faced with before, like finding food as we are human, and finding places to sleep that are dry and as warm as we can find and I can't stress enough the importance of staying together. If one of us gets lost out here, who knows when we'll meet up again and that is one thing I don't want to think about."

"Understood completely, Andrew," Kevin replied, nodding his head although his stomach growled. Placing a hand over his thin stomach, the youngest angel glanced between his two friends and changed the subject,

"So can we get going to look for food now? I don't know how much longer my empty stomach will hold out...after all, we didn't have breakfast this morning..."

"Pancakes sound so good right now," Monica whispered miserably as she already felt a few tears welling up in her brown eyes,

"Actually, just about any kind of breakfast sounds good..."

Grasping his best friend's hand tightly in her own and pulling her to her feet with him, Andrew wrapped an arm around her shoulders again and immediately felt her clinging to him just as tightly,

"We'll find us something to eat first, and then start looking for Paddy...he can't be too far ahead of us..."

As the threesome started walking away from the alley they had been sleeping in and stepped out onto the sidewalk, Andrew didn't miss the looks they were getting from passerby and he forced himself to not flinch at the disgusted looks. Instead, he tightened his arm around Monica's small shoulders and listened as Kevin spoke up on his other side,

"Do you think we're even in the same city, Andrew?"

"Let's hope so, Kev. I don't think the Father would position us too far away from where Paddy is going to eventually show up," Andrew replied, rubbing Monica's shoulder gently to try and warm her, shivering himself a little in the late Fall morning.

Nodding his head, Kevin glanced ahead of them and saw 4 teenagers, who didn't look much better than they did, heading in their direction and he swallowed hard as they seemed to viewing the threesome warily. There were three boys and a girl traveling together, all relatively dirty and the youngest angel only felt a bit of relief when he noticed a look of kindness in the girl's hazel eyes.

All seven of them stopped walking as they came face to face and Andrew felt his best friend huddle closer to him as he spoke up,  
"Hi."

"You're new around here," The oldest boy stated, surveying the threesome as if trying to tell if they presented any threat. Seeing the oldest of the three angels nod his head, he continued,  
"Where you from?"

"Here and there," Andrew replied, trying to remain as vague as possible in order not to tell any lies,  
"We were just on our way to find breakfast as we're all pretty hungry."

The four teens exchanged looks as silent communication passed between them. They had been on the streets long enough to know that there was safety in numbers and these newcomers seemed harmless enough,  
"We know a place if you want to come along…"

"That would be great!" Kevin piped up with a grin, with brought chuckles from the other 4 young people.

Smiling sympathetically at Monica, the teenage girl reached out a hand and lightly touched her arm,  
"No one here is going to hurt you," She offered gently.

Instead of replying, Monica just nodded her head into her best friend's chest and tightened her arms around him as she looked at the foursome suspiciously. Although she was still an angel like before, the childlike fear was starting to overcome here, and she wasn't about to immediately trust anyone at this time.

Noticing the way the Irish angel wasn't saying anything and feeling the fear in her, Andrew spoke up for her,

"She's just a little scared...you know how it can be..."

"Seems like you've been on the streets for quite some time," One of the teenage boys stated as they started leading the three angels towards the restaurant to grab some food,

"I'm Jim, by the way, but you can call me J.R."

"Why the change?" Kevin spoke up, glancing over at his two friends and co-workers

"Whenever anyone is on the streets, we never go by our real names," The teenager girl replied, glancing over her shoulder at the youngest angel,

"Like my real name is Robin, but I go by Jane, so that nobody will know who I really am."

"So, what about you two?" Kevin asked, as he kept up the pace with the older kids, though still under Andrew's watchful eyes.

"He goes by Thorn," JR spoke up as he referred to the oldest boy with long brown hair that was pulled back in a ponytail,

"And this," He pointed to the youngest boy of the foursome, who had sandy blond hair, much like Andrew's,

"Is Hotrod."

"No one ever told you to change your names?" Jane asked, looking at Andrew, as she wondered about this new threesome and if they were siblings. She had noted the way he kept an eye on the excitable young boy and the young girl, who was either very much afraid or very shy, kept a tight grip on him, which he seemed quite comfortable with as he kept his arm snugly around her frail shoulders.

"No," Andrew replied as he shook his head,

"Since we've been out on the streets, we've pretty much been on our own."

Jane smiled as they kept walking,

"Well then, maybe I could help you out as far as names go," She offered.

"I'm sure they can name themselves, Jane," Thorn replied, casting her a side-glance.

"No, actually, I'd appreciate the help," Andrew told her with a smile, his reasoning two fold. First off, when they did find Paddy, going by their real names was not a good idea, however, he didn't really have the heart to do it. They had already lost their physical identity this morning, Monica had lost her accent and he wasn't about to be the one to dub them with new names as well.

"You might want to tell us your real names first?" Jane suggested as they turned a corner and stopped walking for a moment,

"Maybe that would help us figure out something for you..."

"Well, my name is Andrew, this is Monica," He nodded down at his best friend who's face was still buried in his shoulder,

"And this guy over here is Kevin." He shot a small grin over his shoulder at his youngest charge.

"Are you three siblings or something?" Hotrod questioned, leaning up against a brick building.

"No, but we feel like family," Kevin answered seriously with a small sigh,

"We're best friends to tell you the truth."

Nodding her head, Jane tapped her chin with her index finger as she surveyed the newest trio before her and a small smile crossed her face and she pushed her shoulder-length black hair out of her eyes as she pointed at Andrew first,

"I must say, those green eyes of yours stand out, Andrew. There has got to be the perfect name for you..."

Andrew blushed slightly as he awaited her decision, running his fingers through Monica's hair in an effort to silently sooth her.

Tapping a dirty finger to her chin in thought, Jane suddenly smiled and pronounced him,

"Emerald! I think that is perfect and it suites you." Seeing Andrew nod his head slowly, he watched as she turned her attention to Kevin,

"You like to eat and have made that very clear when we mentioned breakfast," She began thoughtfully,

"If you could eat anything, what would it be?"

"Ice cream," Both Kevin and Andrew stated simultaneously before they both laughed.

"Ah, Emerald, you know him well," Jane grinned, before turning back to Kevin,

"Well, the name 'ice cream' is a little girly, but how about 'Ice' for short?"

"I can live with that," Kevin grinned, before he looked a bit concerned,

"Though my name may make me hungry at times."

Jane returned his grin before turning her attention to the painfully quiet young girl who was clinging to Andrew,

"Now, as for you…" She watched as Monica looked up at her briefly before looking away once more and the older girl smiled,

"'Fawn'," She stated knowingly,

"That is what those big, brown eyes remind me of, and you're as quiet as one too…"

No sooner had the words been said, than the shop keeper from the store they were standing in front of came out of his door hollering at them,

"Get away from my shop, you bunch of hoodlums!" The elderly man shouted, his face red with rage,

"You're scaring away my business! Now get out of here before I call the police!"

"Mr. Manson, are you always this cranky?!" Thorn shouted over his shoulder as the small group started to walk away,

"We're not even touching your property!"

"I'm warning you, I'm gonna call the cops and have you thugs arrested if you show your face in my area again!" The store owner growled as he shook his fist at the youngesters,

"Now shoo!"

Fear flickering briefly in Monica's eyes, the human angel tightened her hold around Andrew's waist as she felt him move quickly away with the rest of the group and several long moments later, they were far away from the store and JR and Thorn looked up as they saw that they had reached the destination for breakfast,

"Well, looks like we made it! Don't worry about Mr. Manson, you guys, he's always like that..."

"Nice guy," Kevin remarked under his breath, as he prepared to walk in the front door of the restaurant, but Thorn gently stopped him.

"This way," He directed, leading them around to the back of the building near the alley. The rest of the group waited while Thorn knocked on the back door and waited for an answer.

"Well, hello, baby."

At the sound of this voice, Andrew, Monica and Kevin all looked up in shock, seeing Tess holding the back door open for them, though they said nothing as Thorn spoke.

"We have some others with us today, Tess, if that is okay."

"Of course it is, baby," Tess replied as the 7 of them piled into the back room and Thorn, Jane, Hotrod and JR all took seats at the large steel table in the kitchen, motioning for their new friends to do the same.

Monica felt tears forming in her dark eyes as she watched Tess, remembering the last time she had seen her when her friend had been yelling at her. She opened her mouth to say something but immediately closed it as she looked down at the table.

"So who have we got new here this morning?" Tess asked as she began to fix up plates for the 7 of them.

"This is Emerald, Ice and Fawn," Jane replied with a smile as she looked over the newest members of their group,

"We just met them this morning."

Andrew smiled faintly as he tried to swallow his shock at seeing Tess here and looking over at Kevin, he saw that he was equally as shocked by this turn of events. Monica still looked positively miserable and the oldest angel gave her hand a squeeze under the table,

"Thank you for letting us join them, Tess," He replied softly.

"Well, this bunch stops in for breakfast when food out there is hard to find, and now in late October most of the tourists are gone and I hate to see them go completely hungry," A trace of sadness lingered in her eyes as she surveyed the three angels.

"That's nice of you," Kevin spoke up, accepting the plate of food offered to him as he never met Tess' gaze. Glancing over at his two friends, the youngest angel saw the same confused look on their faces as well, and he knew that the three of them had to find some way to talk to her before they left the restaurant that morning.

"So who's up for a smoke before we head out?" Thorn asked as he rose from the stool and grabbed a pack of cigarettes out of his back pocket. Glancing over at Andrew, Monica and Kevin, the teenager offered them some,

"You three wanta come with us?"

"Uh, no thanks, we don't smoke," Andrew replied quietly, knowing this was the perfect opportunity for them to talk with Tess privately,

"But you guys go on ahead..."

"Suit yourself, Emerald," Hotrod shrugged his shoulders as he, Jane and JR accepted a cigarette each and headed towards the back door,

"We'll be leaving in a few minutes; we won't be too long." He watched as the trio nodded their heads before the small group walked out the door and closed it tightly behind them.

"Tess," Andrew began softly, confusion evident in his eyes,

"What are you doing here?"

"I asked to come, Angel Boy," The older angel said with a sad sigh,

"I wanted the chance to apologize, especially to Monica and Kevin for the way I treated them…" She drew in a deep breath,

"I didn't like the feeling of taking your charges away from you, baby, and instead of talking to them and you about it, I took it out on them instead. I guess I didn't want them to enjoy working with me, because they should have been with you in the first place."

Andrew smiled as he got off the stool to hug his longtime friend,

"I understand, Tess, but you denied them a great privilege of knowing how wonderful you are to work with. Mon' knows but Kevin didn't," He smiled as he winked at her,

"Though we assured him this was not the norm for you."

Wrapping her arms around her 'Angel Boy's' shoulders, tears filling her eyes as she felt just how much smaller he and the other two angels were, Tess ran a hand through his longer blonde hair,

"No, it wasn't, baby, and I regret all of it..."

Pulling away from his former supervisor, Andrew looked up at her as he continued,

"Don't be too hard on yourself, Tess; you do know now, and that's all that matters, at least to me."

Reaching a hand out to stroke Andrew's dirty cheek, the older angel nodded sadly before looking over at the two younger angels, who hadn't spoken for the last few minutes,

"I hope you two babies can forgive ol' Tess, too. I was so wrong to do that, and I promise that if I have to spend an eternity making it up to you, I will."

"I just may hold you to that, Tess," Kevin replied with a wink to let her know he was kidding, before he turned more serious,

"All is forgiven. We were all under a lot of stress with everything that was going on with Andrew and the Sullivan's. Someone had to snap."

She chuckled softly at the youngest angel's words before she turned to look at her Angel Girl, who looked as if she absolutely wanted to crawl out of this child-like form she had been placed in for the time being,

"Baby girl," She said softly,

"I am so sorry about the way I laid into you a few days ago. I was so far out of line, I cannot even begin to tell you…"

Shakily getting down from her stool, the Irish angel burst into tears as she threw her small body into Tess' arms, the emotions from today now coming to the surface. She didn't feel or sound anything like herself and now she had to even answer to a different name, nor did her friends look the same, and she clung to Tess as the one thing she had seen today that was unchanged.

"Oh Angel Girl, I'm so sorry," Tess whispered into the angel's long auburn hair as she rubbed her back,

"Tess is so sorry..."

"Nothing feels the same..." Monica spoke for the first time since early that morning, and as Andrew listened, he was unable to stop the tears from forming in his green eyes,

"I don't sound the same, look the same, or...or..."

"I know, Monica," The mahogany skinned angel closed her eyes as she finally pulled back and looked into the Irish angel's face and then Andrew's and Kevin's,

"But you know that it's only temporary, until you can get Patrick to come home again; you know better then anyone, Angel Boy, that it's only temporary..." As her friend nodded his head sadly, Tess turned back to Monica,

"But keep a hold of the Father in your heart, and keep a hold of your Angel Boy and I know that He will see you all through this long road ahead."

"I'm so...scared," The human angel whimpered as she wiped at her tears, looking at each of her friends through blurred vision.

As Andrew stepped forward, Tess nodded her head at him as he gently pulled his best friend into his arms,

"I know you are, little one," He whispered softly to her,

"And there have been enough changes the last few weeks to last a lifetime and they've thrown us all for a loop, but sweetheart," He pulled away to meet her eyes with his own,

"Some things haven't changed."

Looking into his green eyes, she understood at least that much, as they were filled with the love and compassion she could always find there, as she tried to stop her tears,

"I hate feeling this vulnerable, Andy…" She whispered tearfully.

"I know you do, but I'm going to take care of you; you and Kevin. I promise you that. You know I wouldn't let anything happen to my little Angel Girl," He replied as he tenderly wiped the tears from her face.

"I know you won't," Monica uttered tearfully as she grasped his hands in her own and squeezed them tightly, closing her eyes for a moment until she sensed Kevin stepping forward as well and standing next to them.

"We'll all take care of each other," The youngest angel promised,

"That's my promise; and we will find Patrick soon and before you know it, this nightmare will be over with, and maybe...just maybe, the Father will give us a much-needed break after this. I have never been on this long of an assignment before..."

"Well, you can't say that anymore, Ice," Andrew winked at his youngest charge and he was relieved when his three friends started laughing, Monica included. Shaking his head, the older angel gently nudged Kevin in the side and added,

"I still prefer Wonder Boy, though."

"Are you still going to be around, Tess?" Monica asked softly, some sadness still evident in her eyes, though she was feeling a little better after Andrew's reassurances.

"I don't know, babies," She admitted honestly,  
"I asked for the chance to be able to talk to you all this morning and the Father felt you could all use a familiar face as you get accustomed to this new situation," She sighed sadly herself, not enjoying seeing her three friends in these roles. Gathering them all close to her, she continued softly,  
"This is going to be hard, you three, but you know that," She looked at the two youngest angels as she continued,  
"Trust Andrew, you two. He will do all he can to see you both through this. Kevin, I can tell you are still finding this very exciting, but things are going to get harder as colder weather is right around the corner and food gets hard to find. What you are going to learn is that not everyone has it easy out there, but don't lose hope, baby. The Father is going to see you through all of it," Seeing him nod his head, she looked at her Angel Girl,  
"I know you're afraid, sweetheart, but try not to let it overpower you. We all understand your fear of being in vulnerable positions and this one is certainly that, but the Father is there and so is your Angel Boy and they will both do all they can to keep you safe," She touched both of their dirty faces lovingly,  
"Both of you," She added before looking to Andrew,  
"My greatest comfort in all of this, baby, is that they have the best supervisor in the business with them and they in turn love you and will look out for you as well. You may not always have all the answers, honey, but don't be too hard on yourself when that happens. God is always on your side, and so are Monica and Kevin," Feeling tears stinging in her eyes, she gently kissed each of their cheeks,  
"You need to go now. The others are waiting."

"Thank you, Tess," Andrew said softly, tears in his own eyes as he hugged her tightly, followed by the other two angels. Having said their good-byes, he grasped Monica's hand in his own and followed Kevin to the door as now with reassurances, they prepared to greet the day and all it would hold.

"Where do you all sleep while you're out here?" Kevin asked his millionth question as the four teenagers and three human angels continued walking down the street,

"I hope not some alley, 'cause that's where I spent last night and it smelt disgusting."

"Don't worry, kid, we found a much nicer place several months ago," Hotrod answered as he glanced at Kevin over his shoulder,

"At least it's better then some old alley...and there's no parents around, so that's a good thing."

Cringing slightly at the reminder once again that they were nowhere near the Sullivan's, or the rest of their friends, Kevin huddled close to his co-workers and shut his mouth as they continued following the group down a deserted road.

"So you do this every morning?" Andrew asked quietly, glancing at Jane as she nodded her head.

"It's good exercise for us, and it will be for you," She smiled brightly,

"Plus, some of us have been out here for several years so we're used to it."

"Several years?" Monica spoke up for the first time, shock overcoming here that these teenagers actually liked being out here,

"You mean...you actually like it out here?"

"Well, the Fawn speaks!" Thorn threw at her as he let out a laugh,

"But in answer to your question, yes we do like it out here. I for one, was raised in an abusive home, ran away at 14 and I'm now 16; so I've been on my own for 2 years, and have enjoyed every minute of it."

"Do you eat out of trashcans?" Kevin asked with a pensive look on his face.

"Sometimes," Thorn responded back to the younger child,

"When Jane was younger, she used to be able to get money out of people…they tend to take pity on homeless little girls, but once you're older, other than someone like Tess, you're usually on your own," He stopped walking for a moment and looked thoughtfully at Monica,

"You could be our ticket to some better meals, Fawn. You have that sad sort of look about you that people find hard to resist. Jane, you could teach her."

Seeing the horrified look on the younger girl's pretty face, Jane offered softly,

"It isn't like cheating them out of it, Fawn, and if you get hungry enough, you'd be surprised at what you'll do."

"But...but I can't lie," The little Irish angel whispered, glancing up at her best friend as she felt her heart racing.

"It's not lying, Fawn," JR jumped in as they reached the end of the road and turned a corner onto a dark street where old, beat up cars and vans,

"After all, you'll only do it when you're hungry, so that's not lying."

"It feels like it, though..." Monica whispered in horror, but she stopped as she felt Andrew's gentle hand on her slim shoulder. Looking up at him, she watched as he knelt down to her ear and whispered reasuringly.

"It's okay, Angel Girl," He whispered soothingly,

"You're not lying to anyone, Mon'; this is what life is like on the streets, so it's okay."

Feeling her lower lip beginning to tremble, she only gave her head a jerky nod as she lowered her dark eyes to hide the tears that were threatening them.

"Good," Thorn responded a bit gruffly, seeing the exchange between the two,

"Since that is settled, Jane, you can start teaching her today. Cold weather is going to be here soon and we can't always count on Tess for hand outs."

"And we're home!" Hotrod spoke up with a grin as they rounded the next corner.

Andrew's eyes widened as he looked at what seemed to be an abandoned train yard, with several dozen run down train cars. The place was empty and garbage littered the ground, but he had to admit, it was better than an alley,

"Wow," Was all he managed to say as he looked around him.

"That car is ours," JR announced, pointing at one of the train cars,

"You can share it with us, or pick one of your own."

Feeling herself trembling once again, Monica grasped onto Andrew and looked up at him with fearful brown eyes. Sensing what she was thinking, the oldest angel annouced,

"We'll pick our own, but thanks-"

"Can I stay with them, Sim...I mean, Emerald?" Kevin asked, turning hopeful eyes to his friend and supervisor.

Raising an eyebrow at his youngest charge, Andrew contemplated it for a few moments before he sighed softly and shook his head,

"Kev, remember what I said earlier?"

"Look, Emerald, chill for a few minutes, okay? If Ice here wants to stay with us, then let him! We won't bite," Thorn crossed his arms in front of his chest as he stared the older human angel down with hard dark eyes,

"Or don't you trust him?"

Felt as if he was caught between a rock and a hard place, Andrew swallowed hard and tried to answer as nonchalantly as possible,

"Of course I do. He can stay if he wants," Though it was not the answer he wanted to give and he could clearly sense Monica's distress, he had been left with little choice as he didn't want to battle his youngest charge, who seemed to still be looking at this as a game.

Kevin, seemingly oblivious to Andrew's hesitation and Monica's distress, grinned widely,

"Cool!" He exclaimed as he quickly clamored up into the train car behind JR and Hotrod.

Seeing Monica's look of disapproval that she threw at him, Andrew returned it with one that clearly read, "What did you expect me to do?" as she tearfully looked away from him.

"Fawn, when do you want me to teach you about the easiest ways to get money out of people?" Jane asked gently sensing the rift between the three friends and wanting to proceed carefully.

"Later," Monica replied, she turned away, angry tears filling her eyes as she ignored what Andrew had said earlier about staying together as she walked off into the train yard. It wasn't so much that she was angry at Andrew and she liked Jane, JR and Hotrod well enough…it was Thorn. She didn't trust him and she didn't like the way he suddenly seemed to be making decisions for her and for Andrew and though she knew it wasn't a very angelic thing to feel, she wished she could start glowing right about now just to scare the living daylights out of him.

As the small group started to depart, Monica heard footsteps hurrying after her and knowing it was Andrew, the little angel refused to turn around so he couldn't see the frustrated tears in her doe like brown eyes. As the finally made her way to the train car next to the one Kevin had just climbed into, Monica slumped down on the first step and lowered her head to the ground.

"Angel Girl, I'm sorry back there," Andrew started as he made his way to her, nearly out of breath from his mad dash after her,

"I really am..." The older angel knelt down in front of his best friend and laid his hands on her cold ones.

"I know," Monica whispered, still keeping her eyes away from his.

"What else could I have done, Monica?" Andrew shrugged his shoulders helplessly,

"Thorn had me in a rough spot, and I don't like it anymore then you do that we've had to split up..." He moved his hand to touch her dirty cheek and was relieved when she finally lifted her miserable brown eyes to meet his green ones,

"I'm sorry, sweetheart." He repeated quietly,

"I never like to see you upset...NEVER. And this is no exception..."

"But what about us sticking together? Will we even be able to do that if Kevin continuously hangs around Thorn?" Monica spit out the name of the older boy and her eyes narrowed in anger,

"I'm sorry, Andrew, but that boy makes my skin crawl..."

"I don't know, Angel Girl, I think he's harmless enough. He's just used to being the leader amongst his friends and maybe he feels threatened…" Andrew offered softly.

"But I don't want him making all the decisions for us…I don't want him making them for me!" She cried out, frustrated tears spilling onto her cheeks,

"No one asked me if I wanted to beg money from people! No one asked me if I wanted to be sitting out there, by myself, amongst all those people who look at us like we're circus freaks, asking them to take pity on me. But all of a sudden, it's decided. I don't want to answer to him! I answer to you and the Father! You know how I feel about being like this," With trembling hands she indicated herself in this childlike form as she continued,

"There are people out there who want to hurt us, you said it yourself, and I don't want to be one of them, Andy, and especially not because of some decision Thorn makes!"

Andrew's compassionate and understanding green eyes brimmed with tears as he took in everything his dearest friend was saying and it was a few moments before he replied,

"But I will not let anything happen to you or Kev. If Thorn wants you to do something that you're not comfortable with, just look at me and I'll find a way to get you out of it. He's not the head boss around here. God is."

Closing her eyes tightly to stop another round of hot tears, Monica gripped his hands as tightly as she could before speaking up again in a trembling voice,

"I just hate this...I hate it already, and I just want to go Home. Not back to the Sullivan's, but Home, Andrew. We've been away from there for over a month now, and I'm homesick..."

"So am I, little one," Andrew sighed softly as he released his best friend's hands and motioned her towards him. As the human angel took a seat on his leg and wrapped her arms tightly around him, Andrew closed his green eyes again and held her tightly,

"So am I."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Late that night, Kevin sat up, unable to sleep, as he was so cold. As his eyes grew accustomed to the dark, he realized that Thorn and Jane were sitting up near the entrance to the train car, smoking and talking quietly. Slipping out from under the ratty blanket he was sharing with JR, he walked over to them and sat down.

"Can't sleep, huh Ice?" Thorn asked him, flicking the ashes from his cigarette.

"It's so cold out here at night," Kevin replied, shivering as he wrapped his arms around himself trying to get warm.

"This will warm you up," Thorn replied, thrusting a bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag at him. Seeing the unsure look on the younger boy's face, he shrugged,

"I'm not forcing you, man, but it is the best way to beat the cold."

Feeling completely numb from the cold fall night, Kevin reached for the bottle and tentatively brought it to his lips, gulping down a swallow of the whiskey. It burned going down his throat and he thought for a moment he might be sick, but a moment later, a warm feeling began to creep up on him and he sighed with relief as he handed the bottle back to Thorn,

"Much better, thanks."

"Any time," Thorn replied, tucking the bottle back into his jacket and leaned back against the step, taking another whiff of the cigarette between his fingers,

"If you need another chug, just let me know. I've got lots of bottles nearby."

Wiping his hand over his mouth, Kevin shook his head as he replied,

"I'll get back to you..."

Shrugging nonchalantly, Thorn rose to his feet and dropped the cigarette to the ground, pressing down on it with his foot before turning back to Kevin and Jane,

"Well, I'm gonna go for a walk. I should be back before everyone else gets up." Jane nodded her head and leaned back next to Kevin on the step as they watched the oldest teenager walk away.

"He doesn't go with anyone?" Kevin asked, amazed that he would walk out by himself with so much danger around them.

Jane shook her head firmly,

"No, and I don't know where he goes or what he does. Maybe he just gets restless, I don't know…"

Kevin sighed, feeling the rumblings of hunger in his stomach, as they hadn't eaten since breakfast,

"Are we going back to Tess' place in the morning?" He asked hopefully, but Jane shook her head.

"We try not to take advantage of her and go too often. We went today because we hadn't had much of anything to eat in three days and we wanted you three to meet her," Jane yawned as she stretched her arms over her head,

"Well, I'm headed to bed. I have a feeling Thorn is going to want me to work with your friend tomorrow so we can get some money for food and for cigarettes. He gets really grouchy when he runs out."

Resting his chin his hand, Kevin nodded his head as Jane started back into the train car,

"G'night." He mumbled and a a few minutes after the teenager had disappeared, the human angel rose to his feet and started to head in the direction Thorn had gone. Although he wasn't sure where in the world he was going, the angel just started walking.

Several minutes passed before Kevin looked up spotted Thorn rounding a corner not too far ahead and he was clutching his tattered jacket close to his body. Curiosity getting the better of him, the young Caseworker kept his distance as he followed the teenager until they neared a deserted alley. Not wanting to anger him, or startle him, Kevin drew in a deep breath and spoke up,

"What'cha doing?"

Startled, Thorn whirled around and narrowed his eyes at the human angel,

"What the hell are you doing, following me like that?" Glancing down, he noticed that the stollen items in his hands were visible to Kevin and Thorn glared over at the angel,

"You had better not tell anyone what you saw me do, Ice, you got that?"

"You stole those?" Kevin gasped, looking at the bottle of whisky and the packs of cigarettes in the human's hands.

"Look, I do what I have to do, okay? The whiskey kept you warm, right?" Seeing Kevin nod his head, he continued,

"Well, it doesn't grow on trees and neither does the money to buy it with, so unless you want to freeze to death during the next several months, you'll shut up and let me provide it to you."

"I won't say a word, Thorn," Kevin promised as the older boy started walking again and Kevin fell in step beside of him.

"We'd better get back before your friends miss you," Thorn replied, a slight trace of sarcasm in his voice,

"I wouldn't want you to get in trouble."

"I'm not going to get in any trouble," Kevin stated defiantly,

"We all do what we want to do."

Thorn chuckled. He had to admit, the kid was cute and had guts,

"Whatever you say, Ice. Whatever you say."

Andrew opened his tired green eyes later the next morning to the sound of a sharp rapping on the other side of the train car door. Moaning softly and turning over onto his other side, his human body still feeling tired from the previous day, the angel covered his head with the torn up blanket as he heard the sharp voice of Thorn on the other side.

"Emerald! Fawn! It's time to get up, you night owls!"

"Why can't he just shut up for once?" Andrew heard Monica grumble wearily next to him as she pressed her face into her best friend's shoulder,

"I'm so tired..."

"So am I, Angel Girl, but we have to get up sooner or later," The older angel glanced at his watch and saw that it was just a little bit after 10AM,

"It'll be all right today, Mon', don't worry."

Lifting her head off of his shoulder, Monica groaned once again and sat up on the hard floor,

"I wish there was something to brush my hair with; it's so matted it's disgusting."

Unable to control a laugh, Andrew looked over at her and shook his head,

"You sound like a teenage girl to me right now, Monica..."

"That's cause I am at the moment," The human Irish angel retorted, although she couldn't control a giggle,

"And you don't look so cute either." At that comment, Andrew stuck his tongue out at his best friend and wopped her over the head with a pillow.

"Yeah, that's it," She replied with a pretend scowl,

"Give me a few more cooties with that pillow, as only the Father knows where it has been." Standing up and hugging her arms tightly around her to try and get warm, she gave a slight cough, trying to clear from her throat the scratchiness from being so cold all night, despite the fact that she had snuggled as close to Andrew as she could possibly get.

"Lets go, you two," Thorn's voice bellowed once more from outside,

"We have work to do today."

"Yes, your majesty," Monica mumbled under her breath, causing Andrew to raise an eyebrow at her.

"He is one of the Father's children, Angel Girl," He reminded her with a grin.

"I know," She sighed, tightening the knitted scarf around her neck, as her stomach growled hungrily,

"It's just that some of His children are more obnoxious than others."

Putting a hand over his mouth to stop the laugh from escaping, Andrew shook his head at his best friend and was about to reply when another pounding ont he door was heard,

"Did you two hear me in there or not?!"

"YES!" Monica and Andrew both shouted at the same time and the next thing they heard was the sound of the teenager cursing under his breath and walking away, his shoes crunching on the gravel as he walked.

"I guess we really have no choice right now, Angel Girl," Andrew let out a heavy sigh as he shoved the worn blanket off of him and stretched his arms over his head,

"Now if only the Father gave us a comb or two to get the tangles out of our hair..." No sooner had he said those words did two small combs appear next to the two angels and Andrew winked at his best friend before picking one up and slowly moving it through his longer hair. Mumbling under his breath as he realized once again why he had chosen to cut it in the first place, the angel pushed the long hair out of his eyes before throwing it back in a ponytail.

Moments later, the two angels finally emerged and were greeted with a scowl from Thorn, who's arms were crossed and was leaning against the train car next to their's,

"It's about time, kids. What were you two doing in there anyways?"

"None of your business," Monica mumbled under her breath as she crossed her own arms in front of her.

"What'd you say, Fawn?" Thorn threatened as he took a step closer and examined her,

"Tell me, what did you just say to me?"

Seeing the older boy towering above her, she swallowed the fear she was feeling, refusing to be bullied by him,

"I said it was none of your business." She replied, though her Irish voice be gone, her temper was not.

"Ya know, I think I preferred you quiet and not so mouthy," Thorn retorted menacingly as he took another step closer to her.

"Well, I think I preferred you not in my existence," Monica snapped, her dark eyes flashing anger. Before she knew what had happened, Thorn had given her a hard shove that sent her reeling to the ground with a small cry of pain.

The whole exchange having taken place so quickly, Andrew hadn't had time to react, he now quickly stepped between his best friend and Thorn, his green eyes full of fury,

"Don't you ever touch her again. You got that?" He stated, his voice low and intense.

"Then I suggest you teach her some manners," Thorn replied calmly, as he turned to walk away as if nothing had happened,

"We'll be leaving in a few minutes. We need to find food and she and Jane have work to do today."

"I'm not going anywhere! And you can't make me!" Monica shouted after him as she allowed her best friend to pull her to her feet and she grasped his arm with shaking hands,

"I refuse to take money from people, and I'm not going to abide by your orders, Thorn...or whatever your name is..."

"Do you realize, Fawn, that I am the boss around here, and that what I say goes?" The teenager demanded, taking a step closer to the two and gripping Monica's arm like a vise,

"You realize that you have no choice in the matter-"

As she was about to wrench her arm away from the human, she felt Andrew's hand grasping Thorn's and shoving it off of her. Whimpering slightly, the younger angel clutched her best friend tightly as he faced Thorn, eyes narrowed into slits,

"I thought I told you to keep your dirty hands off of her; I won't tell you again..."

"How you gonna make me, Emerald?" Thorn sneered as he grabbed the color of Andrew's shirt and pulled him so that the angel was in his face,

"You think you're gonna protect Fawn over there?"

"Yes," Andrew replied as calmly as he could, though he could now smell alcohol on Thorn's breath,

"I know I'm going to,"

"You and what army?" Thorn replied, drawing back his fist as if to hit the younger human angel.

"Stop it!" Monica cried out, completely unwilling to see her best friend hurt after all the pain he had been through in recent weeks and with every bit of strength in her small human body, she threw herself at Thorn, causing him to lose his grip on Andrew, but the repercussions were painful as Thorn furiously backhanded her in the jaw and sent her flying to the ground once more.

Anger like none he had ever felt before, welled up inside of Andrew and before he even knew what he had done, he had punched the drunken teenager squarely in the face, knocking him down as the furious angel now towered over him,

"You want to fight!? Let's go then, Thorn! At least pick on someone close to your own size instead of a little girl! C'mon!"

Hearing commotion, Jane, Kevin and JR came flying out of their car and the youngest angel's eyes widened in shock and fear when he heard his supervisor threatening Thorn.

Jane's cry of "Stop it!" seemed to jolt the angel back to reality as he realized exactly what he had done as he tried to calm his racing heart. Never before had he done anything like that. Though he knew in part that it had come from very teenage emotions, he still had trouble believing what had just happened.

"Emerald, what in the world are you doing?" JR shouted as he and the rest of the group rushed over, not even noticing that Kevin had shot a surprised look Andrew's way.

"He didn't do anything!" Monica shouted back, tears streaming down her face as she placed a shaking hand to her already swollen cheek,

"I don't understand why you all continue to take orders from Thorn; he's nothing but a creep!"

"That is IT, little girl!" Thorn scowled as he struggled to his feet, shaking off Jane's hand as she tried to keep him steady,

"You aren't going to talk to me that way-"

Placing himself in front of his best friend again, Andrew glared angrily at the teenager once again before he whispered to Monica over his shoulder,

"Get back in the car, Mon'..." Seeing that she was about to object, the older angel put more firmness into his voice as he looked her square in the eye,

"Go. Now."

Without a second thought, she turned around and raced up the steps to the car she shared with Andrew and shut the door behind her, but she leaned her ear close to it so that she could hear the words being spoken outside.

"Thorn, why are you doing this? Are you drunk or something?" Kevin cautiously asked, his brown eyes still on his friend and supervisor as he could only wonder what had occurred earlier with Thorn and his two co-workers.

"Listen, Ice, this is between me and your buddy here. They're refusing to take direct orders, and they should know the consequences of those choices," The human growled as he clenched and unclenched his fists.

"Thorn, I think you need to sleep it off," Jane said gently, carefully taking his arm,

"This isn't really him, Emerald…" She apologized, trying to smooth things over.

Surprisingly enough, Jane's touch seemed to calm the out of control teenager as he lowered his angry eyes to the ground as he allowed Jane to lead him back to the car, but not without tossing over his shoulder,

"You and your little Fawn better watch your backs."

Not caring that JR was still there, Andrew turned to Kevin, his voice shaking,

"I don't want you staying in there with him, you got that?"

"Andrew!" Kevin objected, fully prepared to argue,

"It was cold last night and maybe he had a little too much whiskey to try and keep warm, but he isn't usually like that!"

"I don't care, Kevin," Andrew replied sternly,

"He attacked Monica, he tried to attack me. I'm not even sure if we're staying!"

Furiously, Kevin looked at his supervisor,

"You can do what you want! I'm not going anywhere!" Turning away, the angel turned child stomped away.

"Kevin, please just get back here!" Andrew hurried after his charge and grabbed his arm, turning him around,

"Just listen to me for a moment, okay?"

Sighing in exasperation, Kevin forced back his anger for the moment and turned to look at his friend again,

"Andrew, I'm not mad at you, okay? Let's get that straight for right now...but I saw what the real Thorn was like early this morning, and he's not like that! He's become a friend, and I don't want to leave. You and Cupcake can, but I'm not-"

Grabbing his charge by the shoulders, Andrew wanted to give him a rough shake but decided against it, not wanting to make things worse,

"Kevin, you saw what just happened there-"

"Yeah, and you had a right to react like you did; after all, we're human right now," Kevin lowered his voice a notch so that the others couldn't hear him,

"Listen, Andrew, I think it'd be best if you and Monica just went on without me, but I need to stay here."

"Kevin, this is not a game, even though you may think it is. We have a job to do out here and that is to find Patrick. Thorn is dangerous and I can deal with him threatening me, but not Monica. I cannot keep her here with him, Kevin, so we have to leave. Are you coming or staying here." Andrew asked a final time, hoping his charge would do the right thing.

Kevin was quiet for a moment as he dropped his eyes to the ground. Finally raising them, he replied,

"I'm staying here."

_Written by: CI and KP_

"Lets go. We're leaving."

Monica looked up from where she sat on the floor of the train car, her hand against her throbbing jaw. Seeing rage still present in Andrew's green eyes, she could only utter,  
"What?"

"I said, we're leaving," He replied sharply, even as he paced the floor of the car, trying to get his emotions under control,  
"Kevin refuses to go, but you and I are out of here now!"

"We can't leave Kevin behind!" She cried out, staring at him in disbelief, trying to figure out what was wrong with him,  
"We're supposed to stick together and if that means staying here, then so be it!"

Slamming his fist up against the wall of the train, he continued his rant,  
"Don't argue with me and while we're at it, you need to start controlling that temper of yours! It made things 10 times worse out there, do you realize that? You kept egging him on and it has to stop!" Watching her eyes widen before she lowered her head, the older angel struggled to calm down. What was wrong with him? It was Thorn he was angry with…. or was it himself for not being able to control his own temper and also for allowing her to get hurt? Was this what Paddy had felt after Angel's assault by George Keyser and Amy's accident; just this incredible teenage rage that for a few moments he had felt unable to control? Was that the understanding he was supposed to be gaining from this?

Running a shaky hand over his face, Andrew forced himselt to take deep breaths as he tried to calm down a bit. Closing his eyes, the human angel leaned up against the wall of the train and slumped down on the ground next to Monica. It was a few moments before he finally spoke up, his voice quiet,

"I'm sorry, Monica...I'm really sorry..."

Noticing that his best friend wasn't speaking, as her head was still lowered to her hands, Andrew looked over at her through tear-filled green eyes,

"Angel Girl, it's not you I'm furious at...it's myself, and Thorn. Never you..."

After several tense moments of silence between the two human angels, Monica hesitantly crawled over to where he best friend sat and kneeled down in front of him,

"We cannot leave Kevin behind, Andrew...please, we can't do that."

"Our assignment is finding Patrick, Angel Girl," Andrew leaned his head back as his eyes stayed focussed on his friend,

"We have no choice right now..."

"Maybe I can talk to him…" She pleaded softly, but he cut her off.

"No. He is with Thorn and I don't want you anywhere near Thorn. Kevin is looking at him as some kind of hero or something. I don't care if he was drunk, he had no right…." Sighing softly, he reached out and gently traced along her swollen jaw with his fingers,

"Sweetie, we have to go. He threatened both of us and I'm not about to let him hurt you again."

"I shouldn't have said the things I did," Monica whispered tearfully,

"I'm sorry….I just didn't want him thinking I was afraid of him…"

No sooner had the words come out of her mouth did Andrew interrupt her again as he laid a finger over her lips,

"I'm the one that's sorry, Angel Girl. I took my anger out with my fist, and I had no right to do that." Seeing the tears streaming from beneath her brown eyes, the older angel wrapped her up in his arms and held onto her fragile body as tightly as he dared,

"I'm sorry, sweetheart..."

Clutching him tightly back, Monica nodded her head against his shoulder as she whispered,

"I know, but I don't want to leave Kevin behind; what if he hurts him...?"

"If he so much as touches a hair on his head, I think the Father will tell me, Mon'," Andrew whispered shakily as he felt guilt fill his heart over the choice they were making,

"But right now, since it's just the two of us he's threatened, we have to get out of here..." Pulling away, he looked deep into her frightened eyes and waited until she nodded her head reluctantly in agreement. Kissing her forehead gently, the angel finished,

"Then let's get out of here."

No more then five minutes later, the two angels had gathered what few belongings they had with them and opened the door to their train car. Looking around to make sure that nobody was in sight, Andrew held his hand towards his best friend and helped her out as well. Releasing it, he wrapped a secure arm around her shoulders and held onto her tightly as they walked quickly, yet quietly across the deserted yard and out onto the street again.

After searching for Paddy for the next few hours and coming up with nothing, Andrew's mind was going a mile a minute. It had been over 24 hours since they had eaten and they were going to have to find a place to sleep, preferably out of the cold night air. He was starting to grow weary, though it was only late afternoon and after walking for hours, he could feel the tiredness settling over Monica as well, though she never uttered a word of complaint. The events of the morning had left them both tired and a bit discouraged, even if a little bit wiser about trusting people on the streets.

"Are you getting hungry?" He asked her gently, knowing it was a foolish question, given how long it had been since breakfast yesterday.

Monica nodded her head as a weary cough escaped her,

"Yes," she whispered softly,

"And really thirsty."

His stomach growling as well, Andrew looked up and relief instantly filled him as the two angels came upon a fruit and vegetable stand up ahead. Placing his hand on his best friend's thin shoulder, he waited until she turned to say something,

"There it is..." He dug his hand in his worn out jeans pocket and wanted to burst into tears as he realized that the Father had provided them with a few dollars to buy some of the food,

"The Father came through."

Wiping at the tears on her face, the human Irish angel clutched her friend's hand tightly as they walked quickly to the stand. An elderly lady was standing behind the table, a bright smile on her face, and as the two human angels walked up to her, the ladies' face filled with complete sympathy and love,

"Well hello there, children. What can I get for you this afternoon?"

Her brown eyes on a pile of juicy oranges off to the side, Monica's mouth watered as she listened to Andrew ask the question,

"How much is everything?"

"Honey, I've seen homeless kids around here all the time, and I don't make them pay for anything," The elderly woman smiled at the angel as she saw the exhausted look on his face as well as Monica's,

"Go ahead and take what you want, sweetheart. Here's a bag for you two to put what you want in it," She leaned over next to her chair and handed a paper back to Andrew, the smile never leaving her face.

Almost speechless, Andrew nodded his head,

"T..thank you…thank you so much…"

She smiled, seeing the looks of thanks on their faces as they gazed at the piles of fruit and vegetables and she shook her head, immediately able to tell how hungry they were,

"No need to thank me. The good Lord provides well enough for me, so the least I can do is help provide of those less fortunate."

Smiling his thanks once more, Andrew turned his attention back to Monica,

"Get whatever you want, baby," He told her gently, watching as she hesitantly placed two oranges, two apples and two tomatoes in the bag.

"You call that a bag full, honey?" the woman shook her head as she approached them and quickly filled the bag with fresh fruit and whatever vegetables didn't need to be cooked. Then she reached behind her and pulled out four bottles of water, which she placed on top,

"That should keep you two going for awhile," Seeing the exhaustion in their eyes and having the feeling that they were new around here, she continued,

"If you take this back alley here, there is an abandoned shed near the junk yard. Not the warmest, but better than the streets themselves and you should be safe for the night."

"Thank you..." Andrew repeated, still in awe over how generous and nice this elderly woman was; something about her reminded him a bit of Rose, and just the thought of his former Search and Rescue supervisor caused fresh tears to well up in his eyes.

"Honey, there's no need to thank me," The woman shook her head as she rested a hand on Andrew's shoulder and then on Monica's,

"I'll be here tomorrow as well, so if you need anymore, just say the word, all right?" As the two friends nodded their heads, the lady smiled at them,

"Now get eating; you two are hungry, I can see it plainly with these old eyes of mine."

Still feeling rather speechless, the little Irish angel wiped at the tears on her cheeks as Andrew took the bag from her trembling hands and held it with one hand while with the other, he wrapped around her shoulders again,

"W-we appreciate this so much, ma'am..."

"Nonsense, little one," She chuckled,

"The pleasure has been all mine."

A moment later the twosome were headed down the alley in the direction they had been told to go and sure enough at the end of it, right inside the junkyard gates, was the shed. Andrew led the way to make sure it was safe, but always making sure Monica was close behind him. Opening the door, he found it dirty, but dry and there was even a stack of tattered blankets in the corner.

Looking around, he found a flashlight as well as some candles and matches and he also discovered that the door had a dead bolt on it, which he quickly locked, feeling safe for the first since they had left this morning. Lighting the candles in the now darkened shed, as Monica watched, he then grabbed some of the blankets and first wrapped one around her trembling shoulders. He had noticed her cough periodically throughout the day and was thankful that thus far, she had not complained of feeling poorly, though he wasn't sure she would tell him if she were.

As they sat down on the floor, he managed a smile at her,

"Dinner is served, Angel Girl."

Monica's fingers trembled as they tore at an orange as she had never felt more hungry and the sweet nectar of the fruit could not have tasted any better had it been a steak. Though her mind kept returning to Kevin despite the fact that she tried not to think about it, but she couldn't seem to get rid of the lump that had formed in her throat.

"I'm worried about Kev, too, Angel Girl," Andrew broke the silence as he knew exactly what she was thinking about. As he bit into an apple, he watched as his best friend looked up at him, her eyes wide with surprise,

"I know it doesn't seem like it, but I'm worried sick about him, Mon'...out there with Thorn and the rest..."

"The other ones aren't so bad," The younger human angel weakly replied, lowering her eyes to the orange she was still eating,

"It's just...HIM."

"Maybe he'll come around soon, and he'll decide to stay away from Thorn," Andrew leaned back against the wall, hoping against hope that he could believe those words he had just spoke,

"Kev is smart enough to know when someone is bad news..."

"I hope so," She replied softly. Finishing the orange, and though she still felt hungry, she was overcome with exhaustion, despite the fact that it was relatively early. Grabbing another blanket from the stack, she wordlessly curled up on the dirt floor, using a piece of the blanket as a pillow.

Watching her with ever growing concern, Andrew reached a hand out to stroke her hair away from her face,

"Sweetheart, are you okay?"

"Just tired," She murmured softly, closing her eyes at the feel of his gentle touch as she tried to push the thoughts of their situation and Kevin aside for now.

Once again, Kevin was unable to sleep during that night. Thoughts of Andrew and Monica kept running through his head, and the warning his supervisor had given to him the last time they had spoken, about Thorn being dangerous. Although he tried to not believe the words his older friend had spoken to him, he also knew better then to doubt what he was saying; didn't Tess say during that first morning on the streets? To trust Andrew?

"And I didn't..." Kevin murmered to himself,

"Instead, I betrayed him again...the second time in a month in a half..."

"You talking to yourself again, Ice?" Thorn asked as he and JR appeared in the entrance of the train car. At the sound of the familiar voice, Kevin wrapped his arms around his knees and looked up. As the youngest angel was about to reply, his brown eyes grew wide as he saw a third person next to the two teenagers, and he would recognize him anywhere...

Patrick.

Pushing aside the shock that he was feeling that he had finally found him, Kevin snapped his mouth shut and gave a tired smile instead,

"Where have you two been?"

"Just around; you know we sometimes don't sleep during the night," JR answered, before turning towards Patrick,

"By the way, Ice, this is Patrick, other known as Pat. He's a newby around here as well, but obviously you two haven't met him yet. Pat, Ice. Ice, Pat." The teenager introduced the two males.

"Hey," Pat replied, looking at the other new boy suspiciously for a moment.

"Hey," Kevin replied, his heart racing with even more fear now. If Patrick was here, where were Andrew and Monica?

"So this is all of you then?" Patrick asked, surveying the three boys.

"Jane and Hotrod are asleep," Kevin offered, indicating the boxcar where the other two runaways were fast asleep.

"And we had two more, but we got rid of them this morning," Thorn growled, lighting up a cigarette.

"What exactly happened this morning, Thorn?" Kevin asked, not knowing if he really wanted to know the full truth, or if he would even get it from Thorn.

Thorn rolled his eyes as he took a drag off his cigarette,

"Fawn decided to get lippy and tell me what she was and wasn't gonna do and Emerald wanted to get in my face about it. So I got in Fawn's face with the back of my hand and you saw what happened from there…"

Kevin suddenly felt completely sick on his stomach at knowing what had happened. Andrew's temper had exploded because Thorn had hit Cupcake, and for the first time, the youngest angel felt a trace of anger at Thorn, though he tried not to show it.

"So I figure, who needs them?" Thorn continued in disgust,

"Emerald had a chip on his shoulder anyway and Fawn's little sweet and innocent act was just that, an act."

"Thorn, that's not really true..." Kevin shook his head, but was interrupted as the oldest boy shot him a dirty look.

"Do you want the same thing to happen to you, kid?" He demanded, staring him down as he flicked the ashes off of his cigarette,

"Because I could do it to you if you'd like..."

"Uh, no, I'd prefer not..." The angel stuttered, suddenly feeling like a shrimp compared to the others.

"But anyways, Pat," Thorn turned back to Patrick, turning his attention away from Kevin,

"You didn't really miss much. Those two are probably long gone now, minding their own business and sticking together like super glue; believe me, you wouldn't want to meet them." He nudged the newcomer in the ribs as Patrick slowly smiled in return.

Now feeling really sick to his stomach, Kevin placed a hand on his lean tummy and mumbled,

"I'm going back to bed..."

Getting no response from the others as they were once again engaged in conversation, Kevin climbed back into the car and under the well-worn blanket. Closing his eyes, he felt tears escape them, knowing now what a huge mistake in judgment he had made. Thorn was no friend; the friends he had let loose this morning as he had made the decision to stay here. What had he been thinking, especially after he had heard the older boy threaten his two dearest friends? The worst part of this was that now that Paddy had shown up, he had no choice but to stay with this group.

Tightening the blanket around him, he whispered tearfully into the cold night air,

"I am so sorry, you guys…"

_Written by: CI and KP_

Andrew awoke before Monica the next morning and immediately felt a kink in his back. Groaning softly, the angel rolled over and soon realized that he had moved over onto a sharp stick on the floor in the middle of the night and had stayed for the next few hours. Sitting up, the human angel carefully rubbed his back and wanted to throw the stick across the shred, but decided against it as he didn't want to wake up his best friend, who had apparently slept sounder then he did.

Moving from the tattered blanket that was still wrapped around him, Andrew moved to the door and unlocked it, poking his head outside. The warm air greeted him and he almost wanted to smile at the sunny day; but the weather didn't match his mood, so he shut the door softly once more and bolted it back up. As he turned back to his best friend, Andrew knelt down next to her and laid a hand on her cheek, and was surprised at how warm she was.

Suddenly hearing a moan coming from the sleeping figure, Andrew stroked her cheek softly until he saw her open her eyes and look up at him,

"I feel horrible, Andy..." She uttered weakly,

"My back hurts, and my head..." Sitting up, she winced slightly at the pounding in her temples,

"I rarely ever get headaches, but this one is horrible..."

"I don't feel so great myself, Angel Girl," Andrew whispered back, wrapping his arm around her shoulders to steady her so that she wouldn't collapse,

"I wish I had some aspirin or something for you to get that headache to go away."

Coughing, she leaned into him heavily and closed her eyes, wincing at the pain in her head,

"It's okay…" She uttered weakly, not wanting him to worry as they had enough to worry about.

Thinking for a moment, he then remembered the money in his pocket,

"No, it isn't okay," He replied gently,

"But if you feel up to a short walk, we can head to the store and I can see what kind of medicine I can get with the money the Father gave us. I'd go by myself, but I really don't want to leave you alone…"

Opening her dark eyes, fear instantly filled them,

"Don't leave me alone, Andrew, please…"

"Never," He replied, kissing the top of her head, before he rose to his feet and gently pulled her up with him,

"Lets go see what we can buy before you get any sicker."

Nodding her head, Monica tightly clutched Andrew's hand as he gently let her out the door of the shed and moments later, they were on the street again. His eyes searching for any drug store nearby, Andrew also kept on the lookout for any possible sign of Patrick anywhere; but much to his disappointment, there was nothing.

Minutes ticked by in silence as they just kept walking, and just when Andrew thought his patience was going to wear thin, he noticed a store across the street and relief flowed through him,

"Let's try that place, sweetie." As the youngest angel nodded her head wearily, Andrew led them carefully across the street and seconds later were standing in front of the door. As the angel pushed it open, instead of making it all the way inside, he heard a loud voice coming from inside the store which caused Andrew to nearly jump out of his skin.

"What are you kids doing in my shop?!" The male voice demanded, coming into their view and glaring at them,

"No hoodlums are allowed in my store, have you got that?"

"Sir, please...I just need to buy some aspirin for my friend here," Andrew nodded in Monica's direction as he spoke, his green eyes pleeding with the owner,

"She's got a nasty headache and I have the money to pay for it-"

"Well go someplace else!" The man shouted in their direction,

"You're not welcome in this place!"

Trying not to let his anger get the better of him as he felt Monica tremble at his side, Andrew dug into his pocket and pulled out the money, showing it to the man,

"See? I'm not going to steal anything!"

"I said get out!" the man hollered one more time,

"Or I'll call the police!"

"Andrew…" Monica whimpered, frightened tears burning in her pain-filled eyes.

Furious now, Andrew nodded his head curtly, lest he say something he regretted and with his best friend's hand firmly in his own, they headed back down the sidewalk,

"I can't believe that guy! Someone should send him an angel. Tess could straighten him out, I'm sure!"

Monica remained silent, her head continuing to pound as she walked beside of him for another several blocks. It was then that she saw the store they had been chased from yesterday morning and she only hoped her best friend wasn't going to try there, but she was wrong.

Andrew walked through the door, his arm tightly around Monica's shoulders and before Mr. Manson could even protest, he spoke up,

"Please, Mr. Manson, I have the money and I just need some medicine for my friend. Just let me buy it and we'll be gone. I promise."

Looking at the young boy in front of him and the pale younger girl by his side, who looked terrified, Mr. Manson sighed,

"As you don't have that thief Thorn with you today, go ahead."

More than relieved, Andrew quickly picked up two kinds of medicine, making sure there was enough money for both and paid Mr. Manson, making sure to thank him, before the twosome headed back outside.

Before they could even head back the way they had come, the sound of an alarm going off, caused Andrew to look up and then he felt someone slam into him.

"Watch where you're going, Emerald!" Thorn snapped, before he took off in the other direction.

"Thorn, what are you doing?!" Andrew yelled after the teenager, but Thorn continued running in the opposite direction, ignoring his yells.

"Okay, that's it, I'm calling the cops. That kid is going to jail this evening!" Mr. Manson raged, slamming his fist down next to his register,

"He won't be seeing the light of day for a while..."

"Mr. Manson, I can try and talk to him," Andrew offered hesitantly, watching the older man's face,

"I really dont know if it will help, but I can try and get him to return the stuff he just stoll..."

"Do what you want, kid, but I don't think that'll make much of a difference right now," Manson fumed in anger,

"I take it you don't know Thorn that well, huh?" He watched as the two angels shook their heads before continuing,

"He's been around this part of town for 2 years now, and he's a no-good thief, I'll tell ya. He comes in constantly to try and steal stuff, and although some time I'm able to get him away, most of the time he ends up stealing behind my back. He's also hooked on drugs and on alcohol..."

Andrew's green eyes widened in horror at what the store owner was telling him...and to think that Kevin was with that monster right now, and thinking him as a friend. Feeling Monica flinch next to him, Andrew tightened his hold on her before turning back to Mr. Manson as he finished.

"Stay away from that creep as much as possible, kids. He can do anything he wants to and not have a care in the world what happens to others," Sighing heavily, he reached for the telephone,

"I'm still calling the cops, so you two kids may wanta get going. Your friend looks incredibly pale." As the owner turned his attention back to the phone, Andrew and Monica started for the door and once they were back out on the street, the older angel was the first to speak.

"We're going to have to find a way to get Kevin away from Thorn. Kev is far too impressionable yet and a guy like that could get him into a lot of trouble, not only on the streets but in the angelic realm as well." Andrew shook his head worriedly. Getting no response from his best friend, he stopped walking just as he felt her swoon slightly, catching her to steady her,

"Sweetheart?" He asked urgently, unable to believe how pale she was at the moment.

"I…I just felt a little dizzy for a minute…" Monica uttered, trying to focus on his face,

"I'm okay…"

"Lets get you back," He replied, really beginning to worry now. His best friend's human form had always seemed particularly susceptible to human illness and he was very much afraid that if she got really sick this time, he wouldn't be able to do much for her. Holding onto her tightly to support her, they started to walk once more, but before they could get very far, the sound of sirens were heard and two police cars pulled over right beside them.

The next few moments would forever remain little more than a blur, as Andrew felt himself being yanked away from Monica and thrown up against the police car. As he felt the officer searching through his pockets, he was completely confused when one of the said,

"Yes, boys, here it is," and looking over, Andrew was horrified to see a gold watch in the officer's hand.

"We've been trying to catch you for two years, punk," The officer stated as he placed handcuffs on Andrew and read him his rights.

"No!" Monica cried out, now understanding completely what had happened when Thorn had bumped into her best friend,

"You have the wrong kid!"

"That's for Mr. Manson to decide when he comes down to give a positive ID, kid," the officer replied gruffly,

"And considering he still had the watch on him, that isn't likely."

Tears racing down her pale face, she pleaded once more,

"Let me come with him, please!" As she tried to make her way to Andrew however, one of the officers roughly pushed her away.

"You're not under arrest, so this would be a good time for you to find your way home to your parents-."

As Andrew was turned around their eyes met, Monica could see how white his face was and the deep fear in his eyes and she only cried harder with the realization that most of that fear was for her.

Andrew kept his eyes on his best friend as he was shoved inside the car, wishing he knew of what to say to her. As the door closed, he pleaded, speaking up for the first time,

"Please…she has no one else…"

"Not my problem, kid, and you have much bigger problems then her right now," The officer replied as the car pulled away from the curb.

Hanging his head in defeat, Andrew felt the tears fall from his eyes. Kevin was in the hands of Thorn, he had just been arrested and Monica's worst nightmare was coming true. She was sick and alone on the streets of this large city.

Watching the car pull away, Monica turned and headed back to Mr. Manson's shop, knowing he was the one person who could clear this up and quickly, but unbeknownst to her, across the street, Thorn grinned widely. He knew exactly where she was headed and he was not about to let that happen.

As the human angel quickened her pace and made her way as fast as she could back to Mr. Manson's store, Monica was just about to open the door again when she felt someone grab her from behind and drag her quickly around the corner. It all happened so fast that Monica wasn't sure what was going on until Thorn finally released her and shoved her in the direction of two other men.

"You think you're going to tell Manson the truth, Fawn?" The gruff teenager demanded, smirking as he watched the two taller guys all dressed in black grab hold of Monica's upper arms roughly,

"Sorry, kid, but they've got other plans. There's no way I'm gonna take the fall for this; your little friend Emerald is gonna have to do the time...maybe even for a few years-"

"NO!" Monica started to shout, but was silenced as one of the men covered her mouth with his hand.

"You. Just shut up, okay?" He ordered, pulling out a knife from his pocket and holding it up to her slender throat,

"Just shut up, and I won't kill you. Believe me, I won't regret it if I decide to do it..."

Chuckling and shaking his head at the angry and frightened tears streaming from her brown eyes, Thorn folded his arms across his chest as he addressed his two comrads,

"Do what you want with little Fawn here. I'm going back to the others; I've got another little kid to take care of...you know, Ice. I think he has sorta a big mouth, and I'm gonna make sure his stays shut as well." As he turned around to head off, he looked back over his shoulder once more at the two older men,

"I trust you to take care of her, and you know what could happen if you fail me."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Andrew sat alone in a jail cell, his eyes riveted on the floor, though they were filled with the utmost sadness. He had been booked, photographed and finger printed and then thrown in here to await Mr. Manson to give a positive ID that they had the right kid and that was the only thing that kept him going right now. He knew Mr. Manson could and would clear his name; the man wanted Thorn in prison, of that there was no doubt. The question was, how soon would he get down here and where would he find Monica once he was released?

He knew legally, he could only be held for 24 hours without charges being pressed, but 24 hours seemed like an eternity to him right now. Things had changed this morning in a matter of 5 minutes, so he knew 24 hours could do some serious damage. Under any other circumstances, he would have welcomed the warmth and safety of the jail cell, but only if the little Irish angel was here with him and that was not the case.

Andrew's greatest fear came from Thorn's threat against he and his best friend. "Watch your backs" he had said and the older boy certainly had a way of getting even. Andrew hadn't even felt him slip the watch into his pocket as if he had, he would have immediately returned it to Mr. Manson and all this would have been avoided. But his greater fear lied with wondering if Thorn had been nearby when he had been arrested and had he then come after Monica and the thought of it brought tears to his eyes. In the form of a 12-year-old girl, she was no match physically for the older boy and now, with her getting sick, she was all the more vulnerable to whatever Thorn might do to her and her fear this morning over even the possibility of being left alone, broke his heart. She had wanted so much to keep the three of them together and in the end, it was she who had been left completely alone on the cruel streets.

He was equally worried about Kevin, though at this point, his concern was intermixed with some anger as well. Had they stayed together and this had happened, at the very least, his two charges would be together right now. But he also knew that if his youngest charge had any idea of what Thorn had done this morning, he would have seen the truth. Kevin was impressionable, but he loved he and Monica, of that much, Andrew knew. He remembered his fierce protectiveness several days ago when Philip had first appeared at the Sullivan's and he knew that Kevin's reaction would be no different now, if he knew the full truth. Andrew's one comfort there was that he believed whole-heartedly that Jane and JR were good people. What he didn't know was if Thorn threatened Kevin, if the other two would have the courage to stand up to Thorn.

Sighing softly, he tried once again to reach his best friend through their communication of the heart, but once more, her voice was silent.

Kevin looked up late that afternoon and saw Thorn walking towards him, a smirk on his face. Resting his chin in his hands, the youngest human angel turned his eyes away as the teenager neared him,

"Where've you been?"

"Doing some business is all," He replied, taking a seat next to Kevin on the step of the train car,

"I ran into your two friends down town actually..." He watched as the young angel's eyes lit up in surprise, but before Kevin could say anything, Thorn continued with the smirk still on his face,

"Don't worry about Emerald and Fawn, Ice. They're fine." Seeing the sad look evident on the boy's face, Thorn pulled out a bottle from behind his back, wrapped in another paper bag,

"As a matter of fact, you look like you could use some perking up, kid. Care for a swig?"

Frowning in disgust, Kevin shook his head hard as he scooted away slightly,

"No thanks. I'll pass today..."

Shrugging nonchalantly, Thorn rose to his feet again and started to head back inside the train car,

"Whatever you say, Ice." Turning back around, the teenager stopped before heading back inside the car. Shooting a quick glance Kevin's way, he noticed that his back was turned and with a smirk showing plainly on his face, he opened the bottle of alcohol and poured a good amount of it into the cup filled with juice sitting behind Kevin and chuckled to himself before putting the cap back on the bottle and heading quickly back inside the boxcar.

Scowling in the direction Thorn had gone, Kevin picked up his cup and took a drink and as he swallowed, he felt the liquid burn his throat. Knowing instantly what Thorn had done, it took everything in him not to go after the older boy, but he knew that would not be wise. Disgustedly throwing out the rest of the liquid in the cup, he felt his stomach growling again and looking up, he saw JR approaching,

"Hey JR, I'm starved. Want to go on a food hunt?"

"Where's Thorn?" JR asked, and for the first time, Kevin saw a little bit of fear in the other boy's eyes for Thorn.

"Inside," Kevin motioned to the car as he stood up,

"C'mon. I don't want to go alone and my stomach is beginning to understand that digging through trashcans thing."

JR grinned as the two set off,

"Well, maybe we'll get lucky and not have to do that today."

"Where do you usually go during lunch?" Kevin wrapped his arms around himself to try and warm up in the cold air,

"Besides trashcan hunting..."

"Occasionally, we head over to see Tess, but most of the time, we end up having to beg for money so we can buy some. On those rare occasions, we find a food stand outside of some shops and a few nice owners sometimes give us free food. But as I said, that's very rare that that happens...most of the people treat us like scumbags," JR replied, shrugging shoulders as they continued walking down the street.

Before Kevin could reply, they spotted Hotrod coming quickly down the sidewalk; the younger boy's face was unusually pale and he looked like he had seen a ghost. JR tilted his head to the side and gazed over at his friend,

"Hey, man, what's up? You look like you just saw a ghost..."

Ignoring the statement, Hotrod forced himself to take deep breaths as he spoke up shakily,

"Have either of you seen Thorn?"

Glancing at one another, Kevin frowned as he replied slowly,

"Back at the trainyard. Why do you ask?"

Hotrod ran a shaky hand through his hair and he looked like he wanted to say something, but decided against it and said something else,

"I just saw something that I never thought I'd see...and I'm going to have to talk to him soon...He's done something terrible to Emerald and Fawn."

Kevin felt his own face pale upon hearing those words as he swallowed hard,  
"He said he ran into them and they were fine…"

"He's a liar too," Hotrod replied angrily,  
"And they were kinda all right when he ran into them, though Fawn didn't look so hot, but they're both in all kinds of trouble now."

"Tell me!" Kevin demanded, his heart racing,  
"They're my friends and I have to know!"

"Well, he planted a stolen watch on Emerald and the police got him. He was arrested and taken away. I was getting ready to go and help Fawn, but then Thorn showed up again and he…he turned her over some gang members from the rougher neighborhood…they had knives…." Hotrod shook his head worriedly,  
"Thorn has gone too far this time."

"What?" Kevin gasped at those words, and the youngest human angel backed up a step, his eyes growing wide,

"Thorn, he...he..."

"Emerald is in jail right now, Ice," Hotrod finished angrily, his dark eyes blazing over what the leader of their group had done to Andrew,

"And later on, I'm gonna have to find the courage to confront him..."

"Andrew was...he was arrested...and Monica, she..." Kevin stuttered, not even paying any attention to what the other two boys were saying. His attention was only focused on his two dearest friends, and the trouble one teenager had gotten them into. What had he done? Suddenly, the angel wasn't feeling all too hungry at the moment; instead, he was feeling sick to his stomach,

"I'm sorry, I-I'm not feeling too well...I'm going back..." He nodded his head in the other direction and before the duo could say anything, Kevin had bolted off and as he rounded a corner, he leaned over and started retching. Tears spilled down his face in anger, guilt and horror. His two closest friends in the entire angelic realm were in deep trouble and there was nothing he could do to help them.

Monica's head pounded harder as she felt herself being led down alley after alley, all the while trying to remain conscious, as she felt more and more dizzy. Her chest felt tight and for the first time in days she felt incredibly warm. The fear was causing her heart to pound quickly as she wasn't sure when the last time was she had felt so afraid. The hands that guided her were rough and she suddenly very confused about where she was as she had been taken down so many side streets. The neighborhood they were in now didn't look good to her. There was graffiti everywhere and garbage and the sounds of arguing and loud music sounded from inside many of the apartment complexes.

Her vision blurred by tears and certain these two older boys planned on killing her, she took a deep breath and tried to steady her nerves. She had felt their grasp loosen on her somewhat and in one final attempt to get out of this situation, the little Irish angel bolted, racing as fast as her weakened body would allow her.

A moment later, she gave a startled cry as she felt herself being thrown roughly to the ground, one of the boys directly on top of her. As he rolled her over to face him, new terror set in as she started to fight as hard as she could.

"You're looking to die, aren't you, Fawn?" The one boy hissed as he raised his knife into the air,

"Well, Thorn is looking for that to happen too."

Even as her heart continued to pound loudly in her chest and she was frightened as could be, Monica sucked in a deep breath and with her right foot, she kicked the boy straight in the crotch and as he yelled loudly and fell off of her, Monica rose to her feet and started running again as fast her weakened legs could carry her. Just as the angel thought she was starting to lose them, she felt a stinging in her right hand, but chose to ignore it until she just reached the next alley.

But before she could continue, the young angel cried out as she felt herself being tackled again and tears instantly flooded her eyes as she looked into the furious face of the same boy once more,

"You little witch! You're gonna pay for this, yes you are my dear..." As he raised the knife and was about ready to plunge it into her heart, the boy felt a tapping on his shoulder and he turned around, even as his free hand continued to hold onto Monica's thin neck.

"What?!" He demanded, glaring at his counterpart.

"I don't think Thorn really wants us to kill her, dude," The second boy stated, glancing over at the struggling angel,

"Plus, we can really get into a heap of trouble if we do that. I think he just wants us to hurt her, but not kill her..."

"After what she just did to me, she deserves to die!" He snapped, looking down at the young girl beneath him, smiling at the way she was shaking violently.

Monica closed her eyes for a moment, her heart whispered desperately,

"Andrew…they're going to kill me…I'm so scared…I'm so scared." Opening her eyes once more, she saw the knife heading for her and in one final attempt, she raised her hand to block what seemed to be the inevitable.

A cry of pain escaped her lips as she felt the knife plunge deeply into her hand and as the boy yanked it back out again, the pounding in her head and the pain she felt suddenly seemed to block out their arguing voices as her eyes closed and she welcomed the blackness.

Andrew lifted his head suddenly as he heard his best friend speak to his heart for the first time and he felt his heart leap into his throat as he heard the words she spoke,

"Andrew...they're going to kill me...I'm so scared...I'm so scared..."

"Monica...Monica, don't give up, little angel. Fight for me, please just fight for me...I love you, sweetheart, and I wish I could be there with you..." His voice broke on a sob as he lowered his head to the floor once again and ran a hand across his face to smear away the tears. Just as he was starting to close his eyes, however, a voice on the other side of the jail cell sounded and Andrew glanced up to see his arresting officer looking at him, arms crossed and a disgusted look on his face.

"I'm just coming to tell you that Mr. Manson isn't coming down here until tomorrow to identify you, kid. He thinks that you should stay in here for at least 24 hours to think about what you've done-"

"Officer, I am not the kid that stole that watch!" Andrew cried as he rose to his feet and wrapped his hands around the bars of the cell,

"I'm not Thorn-"

"I guess that determination will be made tomorrow, kid," He replied gruffly,

"Seems to me you were caught red-handed."

"It was planted on me! You have the wrong kid!" Andrew pleaded, his vision blurred by tears.

"I said tomorrow!" the officer repeated before he turned and headed back to the door.

"Tomorrow may be too late!" He cried out, but the door shut and the human angel sank down to the floor and sobbed brokenly. As the minutes ticked by, he was suddenly aware of the fact that he was not alone, as he looked up through blurred vision, his voice trembling,

"R..Rose…"

"Hello honey," She whispered softly as the angel immediately fell into her arms,

"The Father thought maybe you needed a friend right about now, so He sent me."

Burying his tear-streaked face into her shoulder, Andrew clutched his friend as tightly as he could before he finally found his voice,

"I...I do..."

"Oh sweet Angel Boy, I know how hard this is," Rose soothed as she gently rocked him back and forth while running a reassuring hand through his hair,

"But I'm just glad I'm able to be here with you right now." Not getting a reply from her friend, the Search and Rescue angel closed her blue eyes as they filled with tears as well and gently rubbed his back,

"It'll be okay, honey; it's gonna be okay..."

"What about Monica...?" The younger human angel weakly asked, never lifting his head from where it rested on her shoulder,

"W-will an angel be...be with her...?"

"Oh yes, He's going to send her an angel of her own really soon, sweetheart," The older angel whispered into his ear,

"And I'm going to be with you throughout this whole mess, you have my word."

"You're staying here tonight?" He whispered weakly.

"Yes, Angel Boy, and God willing this will all be cleared up in the morning," She replied gently.

"Mon' said…she said they were going to kill her…" He choked out,

"She's been so scared and she's sick, Rose…she can't fight them…"

"Oh, I think your little Angel Girl will do a little better than you think, honey. Afraid or not, she's starting to develop a feisty side to her, no matter how bad she feels, and the Father is with her, and you and Kevin too." She reassured him, pulling away to look into his face.

"It's just so...hard, Rose..." Andrew tried to steady his voice as he lifted a hand to wipe at his eyes,

"I-I don't know how much more of this I can take; I just...I just wanta go H-Home..."

"I know you do, Angel Boy, and you will soon," Rose soothed as she lifted a hand and wiped at the remaining tears on his cheeks,

"God still loves you just as much as ever, and He's never going to leave you and He will let you all come Home soon. Trust us, honey."

"It's tough being human," The younger angel uttered weakly as he looked down to the floor,

"I don't even...feel like an angel right now, Rose..."

Noticing that her 'Angel Boy' was about to burst into tears once again, Rose reached over once more and wrapped him up tightly in her strong arms as he released his emotions. She wanted so very much to say some more encouraging words, but at the moment she wasn't all too sure of what she could say to comfort her friend.

Saying a silent prayer for help, she smiled in thanks as she began to speak softly to him,

"You know that the Father never gives any of His children more than they can handle, honey, and even if you don't feel like you are handling things well right now, rest assured that you are. He needs you to trust Him right now, that He will see you all through this. He's proud of you, honey, for being the leader He knew you could be and He's proud of your Angel Girl, for sticking by you, even when you don't have all the answers. Kevin is still learning and he will learn plenty from this experience," She smiled, thinking of something else,

"I'm going to tell you the same thing I told your two charges prior to your healing not long ago; that they needed to keep repeating the word 'trust', especially when they found it the most difficult to do so. You hang onto that, honey and you don't need anything else."

_Written by: CI and KP_

"Thorn!" Hotrod called out as he and JR returned to the train yard,

"We need to talk!"

Walking out of the car, a cigarette hanging from his lips, Thorn looked more than a little annoyed at this interruption,

"What about?" He asked coolly, looking at the two boys.

"I know what you did this morning, to Emerald and Fawn," He stated firmly, trying to not feel afraid,

"You were way out of line, Thorn. Emerald is totally innocent and you know it! Fawn is just a little girl, for heaven's sake!"

His eyes narrowed into slits as he looked at Hotrod and JR, and with another puff of the cigarette, Thorn threw it to the ground and stepped on it,

"I don't know what you're talking about, man-"

"Don't you dare play innocent on me, Thorn!" Hotrod snapped in reply, as he walked closer to the taller teenager and glared at him,

"You know full well that Emerald is the one who's in jail, and you sent Fawn off to those two gang hoodlums-"

"You did what?" Jane's voice interrupted the heated argument as she stepped out of the train car as well and stared open mouthed at the trio,

"Thorn, what did you do?!"

"I didn't do anything, Jane!" The teenager snapped back at her as he folded his arms across his chest,

"Hotrod here must be mistaken."

"You planted a watch on Emerald that you stole from Mr. Manson's store, knowing he would call the cops. Then when they arrested him, you had two gang members from the east side of town take care of Fawn!" Hotrod continued angrily,

"You were ticked off because they got the better of you yesterday when they stood up to you and you hate it when anyone stands up to you, Thorn! Well, get used to it, pal, because I'm going to the cops and telling them they have the wrong kid, and let them know who the real thief is! Then I'm gonna help Emerald find Fawn, if she's still alive!"

"Thorn, how could you do that to them?" Jane demanded angrily,

"We're all supposed to stick together!"

"They started it!" Thorn snarled as he jumped out of the train car and grabbed hold of Hotrod,

"And you aren't going anywhere, you got that?"

"You started it, Thorn," JR replied as calmly as he could,

"It was obvious Emerald led the three of them and you tried to take over and when they wouldn't let you, you got mad."

"Shut up, you fool!" Thorn shouted as he grabbed Hotrod around the throat and turned him towards the train car and pushed him up against it,

"You aren't going to the police! I'll see to it myself that you won't-"

"Thorn, stop it!" Jane cried as she grabbed the older boy around the shoulders and tried to wrench him away from the younger teen. But Thorn was too quick and shoved her away, knocking her to the ground in a heap,

"How could you have changed so much the past few days? I don't get it..."

"He was always like this, Jane; we just never really saw it until now!" JR shook his head in anger as he helped Jane to her feet,

"He's probably been stealing for the full 2 years we've known him..."

"He has," Hotrod gasped for air as he tried to shove Thorn's hands away from his neck,

"That's what the cops told Emerald when they took him away! They said that they have been looking for him for 2 years...and they totally have the wrong kid! You've got to turn yourself in, man; you'll only make things worse for yourself if you don't-"

Before he could continue, the teenager felt Thorn's fist come in contact with his jaw and with a loud groan, he crumpled to the ground in a heap and put a hand on his face. After several moments of trying to catch his breath, Hotrod shakily rose to his feet again and got into Thorn's face, his own face now red with anger,

"I'm going to the cops and then I'm going to find Fawn, and nobody can stop me, man! Not even you!"

"Oh yeah?" Thorn growled as he pulled a sharp knife from his pocket and brought it to Hotrod's face,

"You were saying?" He smirked as he watched out of the corner of his eye as Jane gasped loudly and clung to JR tightly, both pairs of eyes on the duo.

Hotrod continued to meet Thorn's eyes steadily,

"I'm not backing down this time, Thorn," He replied calmly, before he lunged at the older boy with all the strength in him. There was a struggle, as Hotrod tried to hold the wrist that held the knife, but before too long, the younger boy was finally defeated by Thorn's strength.

Jane screamed as she watched Thorn plunge the knife into Hotrod's neck, before she turned away, unable to watch the life draining out of her friend.

Her screams brought Patrick and Kevin running from opposite directions, both of them stopping short and looking on in horror at what had just happened.

"What have you done?" Kevin cried out, his face deathly pale as he looked away, unwilling to watch any longer.

Standing up, Thorn turned to the rest of the group, his expression one of complete calm,

"If any of you even so much as think about crossing me, you'll get the same." He stated coldly, before turning and walking away.

Jane bolted over to Hotrod and knelt down beside of him, her tears falling like the rain, as she smoothed his hair back from his face,

"Hotrod? Hotrod? Oh God, please…"

"He's gone, Jane," Kevin whispered, approaching her, tears in his own eyes, as he felt for a pulse. Finding none, he reached down with a trembling hand and closed the boys eyes one final time.

The rest of the afternoon and through the night passed increasingly slow for Andrew, and before too long, the human angel had fallen asleep against Rose, her strong arms wrapped protectively around his thin shoulders. With a sigh, the elderly Search and Rescue angel looked up at the clock on the other side of the jail cell and saw that it was just after 8:00AM.

Closing her sad blue eyes, Rose contined stroking Andrew's blonde hair before lifting up a silent prayer to their Creator,

"Please Father, if it be Your will, let this whole mess start to come to a close before too long. He's trying so hard to trust You, but I can feel it in him that he's having his doubts again. Please just be with him, and those other little ones out there. Thank you, Father..."

Opening her eyes, the older angel felt her friend stir in her arms and she smiled slightly as he looked up at her,

"Good morning, Angel Boy."

"Hi Rose," Andrew uttered sleepily as he sat up and rubbed at his green eyes.

"How did you sleep, honey?" She asked softly, trying to smooth out his tousled hair with her hand.

"Not the greatest…I was afraid to sleep, afraid I'd miss Monica trying to talk to me…" He lowered his head sadly,

"But she never did, which either means she is protecting me or…she is physically unable to."

Rose regarded him with sympathy in her blue eyes, but before she could respond, the door opened and one of the police officers walked in with an older man, who took one look at Andrew and gave an exasperated sigh.

Turning to the officer, Mr. Manson shook his head in annoyance,

"You've got the wrong boy! This one is harmless and if he had the watch on him as you say he did, then it was Thorn, as he calls himself, that planted it there," Shooting an apologetic look at Andrew, he continued,

"This young fellow was in my store yesterday, yes, but he paid cash for medicine for his young friend. I can assure you, he didn't steal a thing."

The officer's dark eyes widened in shock as Mr. Manson spoke, and he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his uniform,

"Are you absolutely positive about this, Mr. Manson?"

"I'm 100% positive about it!" Manson snapped, turning to look at the officer next to him,

"Release him, he has no reason to be here in the first place!" Turning back to Andrew, he shook his head apologetically,

"I am so sorry about this, kid..."

Andrew was silent for a few moments as he listened to the keys rattling of the cell, and he rose to his feet as the officer swung the door open, although slight doubt was evident in the man's eyes,

"All right then. You're free to go, kid."

Shooting a surprised look Rose's way, who was invisible to the other two humans, Andrew walked out but before he followed the duo out the second set of doors, the human angel spoke up,

"Um, officer? I can tell you where Thorn really is..."

The officer looked over at Andrew for a moment and seeing nothing short of sincerity in his green eyes, he nodded his head,

"I'll grab a squad car and meet you around front, kid."

Feeling a slight bit of relief at long last, Andrew turned around to thank Rose, but found that his friend had vanished. Giving his head a brief nod of understanding, he turned and followed the officer out of the cell hold.

"I'm telling you, we have to get her outta here!" The boy looked at his fellow gang member, before he turned his eyes once more to the young girl who had not once woken up since she had faded into unconsciousness yesterday. There had been much bleeding from the stab wound to her hand, and she was shivering in her unconscious state, her face and forehead bathed in feverish sweat. The only sound she had made since yesterday morning was the deep wracking cough that would shake her, before she would fall silent once more. They had kept in her a small shed overnight, keeping watch lest she escape, but her eyes never opened.

"I still say we just kill her," His comrade stated firmly in disgust.

"I don't want that on my hands, man!" The other replied angrily,

"She's just some kid who ticked off Thorn! You know how he works. She's probably going to die anyway-."

"I want her dead NOW!" The second boy shouted, folding his arms across his chest and glaring at the unconscious angel, who let out a slight whimper in her sleep,

"Are you gonna help me or not?"

Sighing in annoyance, the younger boy shook his head and grabbed the knife from his comrade's hand and threw it to the ground in disgust,

"Look, why don't we just dump her in this alley, and then be gone? Nobody will ever find us, and you know that Thorn won't ever tell the stupid cops who we are!"

The older boy looked ready to object, but he shut his mouth tightly and rolled his eyes to the morning sky,

"Fine, have it your way. Pick her up, and follow me." As the other gang member rougly picked her up in his arms and followed his friend through the smelly alley, he kept glancing around them to make sure nobody was nearby. Breathing a sigh of relief, he stopped walking and dumped the human Irish angel where his friend directed.

"Now let's get out of here! Because if we get caught, you're going down with her!" The older gang member growled as he grabbed the younger one's arm and the two started running down the alley, and before long they had disappeared from sight.

Keeling down behind the dumpster where Monica's body had been deposited, Philip's eyes filled with sadness as he gently smoothed her sweat dampened hair from her deathly pale face. Working quickly, he tied a handkerchief around her hand to try and stop the bleeding, before he shrugged out of his jacket and wrapped it snugly around her small form.

Cradling the unconscious angel in his arms, he whispered softly, though she could not hear him,

"Hold on for me, little angel. As soon as it is safe, I will take you back to your Andrew."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Andrew's eyes searched the streets for any sign of his best friend or Patrick as the two police cars raced towards the train yard,

"How am I ever going to find either one of them, Father?" He whispered in near defeat as he watched the hundreds of people who were along the streets.

"You okay back there, kid?" The one officer asked as they approached the train yard.

"More or less," Andrew replied, his eyes widening somewhat as he saw no one out and about in the yard.

"Looks like we've got bigger problems," Officer Herald stated to his partner,

"We'd better call for back up and an ambulance. Looks like we've got a kid down in there…"

"Oh God..." The human angel whispered to himself, his eyes instantly filling with tears as he saw Hotrod's body,

"Hotrod..."

"You know that kid?" Officer Herald glanced over his shoulder at Andrew as his partner pulled the car into the lot and it came to a screeching halt.

"Yes...I do..." Andrew murmured and as soon as the car stopped completely, the angel shrugged off his seat belt and bolted from the vehicle. The sounds of police sirens in the distance drowning out in his ears, Andrew fell to his knees next to the unconscious teenager on the ground. A large knife wound was visible on his neck, and as a former Angel of Death, he knew instantly that Hotrod had been dead for quite some time,

"Oh Hotrod..." He lowered his head and closed his eyes as he rested a hand on the boy's still hand.

At that moment, the angel looked up and his eyes met with Thorn's as the older boy came to the entrance of the boxcar. As their eyes met, Andrew could clearly see the hatred that shimmered in them, before he looked up at the officers and said softly,

"That's the kid you want and my guess is that he is responsible for this too."

Quickly, Officer Herald drew his gun and pointed it at Thorn,

"Get down here, kid. We don't want any trouble. We just need to take you downtown for some questioning."

Lighting a cigarette, Thorn watched them with drunken interest,

"Maybe later, boys. Right now, I gotta have me a little funeral."

"This isn't a joke," One of the other officers stated sternly,

"You either come to us peacefully, or we come to you."

Andrew's saddened eyes looked up at Thorn,

"Don't make it worse than it already is, Thorn."

"What do you know, Emerald," Thorn spat back,

"Did you enjoy your jail time? Hope you said your good-byes to little Fawn before they carted you away, as you won't get another chance…"

Andrew's green eyes narrowed in anger, but he watched his temper as he shakily rose to his feet,

"That's a lie; I know she's still alive, wherever she is...Thorn, you're just making this worse-"

"Shut up, Emerald!" Thorn snapped back, leaning against the train car and taking a wiff of his cigarette,

"You don't know anything; in fact, I'm surprised they released you so easily, you know? I woulda loved to have come to your trial-"

"Look, Thorn, you're really pushing it, "The second officer warned, his gun still aimed on the drunken teen as he took a step closer,

"I'm going to be nice and give you another chance to come to us willingly."

Laughing, Thorn threw the cigarette on the ground and crossed his arms in front of his chest,

"Nobody can make me come to you. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some business to take care of."

As Thorn jumped down out of the train car, the officers wasted no time in arresting him, though he was foolish enough to struggle. He stood no chance however, and soon he had been handcuffed and was swearing violently at the officers. But the deed had been done and Andrew knew Thorn was no longer a threat to anyone.

For the next few hours, he watched detectives work the crime scene and watched Hotrod's body being taken away. It was nearly evening by the time they were satisfied, having found Thorn's knife and feeling certain that not only was it the murder weapon, but that the fingerprints on it were Thorn's.

As the last car drove away, the human angel lowered his head in exhaustion, worry and anguish as tears filled his green eyes.

Resting his weary head in his hands, Andrew just sat there on the step of the train car he had shared with Monica several days ago, the tears never ending. Lifting a hand to try and wipe them away, the human angel finally looked up as he sensed a familiar presence near him and his jaw nearly hit the ground as he saw Philip walking towards him, carrying a lifeless Monica in his gentle arms. His best friend's hand was wrapped up in a hanky, while Philip's jacket was wrapped securely around her thin shoulders and Andrew could instantly see the sadness in the other angel's brown eyes.

"Andrew..." Philip greeted his friend as he finally neared the shocked human angel,

"Andrew, the Father directed me to her this afternoon...and He wanted me to bring her to you."

Choking on a sob, Andrew stayed put on the front step and wasn't sure of what to say as he watched the angel kneel down in front of him, Monica's lifeless body still in his arms. Finally finding his voice, Andrew whispered hoarsely,

"She's still...alive, right?"

"Yes, my friend, she is," Philip reassured him gently,

"She isn't well though." Seeing Andrew reach for her, he gently deposited the unconscious angel into his lap, watching through tears as Andrew clutched her as tightly to himself as he dared as he gave way to the sobs once more.

"Oh sweet baby girl, I thought I had lost you…" He sobbed unashamedly as he cradled her in his arms. Brushing back her hair, he felt how hot she was and he only wanted to cry harder, not knowing what he would be able to do for her. Trying to control his emotions, he asked shakily,

"What did they do to her?" His voice held fear and Philip knew what he was thinking.

"They roughed her up a little, Andrew," Philip replied, resting a hand on his shoulder hoping to offer some small comfort,

"One wanted to kill her and tried, but she fought back and the knife was instead plunged into her hand. She's been unconscious since yesterday morning and they deposited her behind a dumpster earlier today. I stayed with her until Thorn was taken care of, so I could bring her back where she belongs….with you."

Burying his face in her dirty auburn hair, Andrew forced himself to gather together his emotions so that he could look over at his friend,

"Thank you...for bringing her back...again..."

"It's always my pleasure, Andrew," Philip replied quietly, squeezing his friend's shoulder gently,

"I care about both of you, you know that; but that little angel is your whole world..."

"She is..." The young human angel whispered as he only held onto his best friend tighter,

"Oh God, she is..."

Sighing softly, Philip nodded his head sadly and there was silence between the two before Philip heard the Father speak to his heart and he knew that he had to get going,

"I better get going, my friend. Take care of yourself, and your Angel Girl, and I'm sure before you know it, this whole nightmare will be over with." He smiled in Andrew's direction and was relieved when his friend weakly nodded his head.

Before departing, the angel leaned forward and wrapped both of his friends in a gentle hug before releasing them and stepping away,

"I'll see you around." With those final words, Philip disappeared from the trainyard.

Feeling slightly overwhelmed for a moment, Andrew carefully stood to his feet, with Monica still in his arms and walked up the steps into the train car. What he saw there nearly made him break down into tears all over again as he was reminded of the Father's unfailing love for them.

There were now several additional blankets, which though worn, still looked warm, as well as water and a cloth, some medicine and well as supplied to take care of the stab wound.

"Thank you, Father, thank you," He whispered as he gently laid his best friend down and immediately wrapped her up in a few of the blankets.

"Andrew?"

The sound of Kevin's voice caused him to turn around as his eyes met with the sorrowful ones of his youngest charge. At first he wasn't sure of what to say even as his eyes flooded with relief that Kevin was all right, though he still felt intense disappointment in the decisions his charge had made,

"Kev, are you okay?"

Kevin bit his lip to try and ward off the tears that threatened his eyes,

"Yeah, I'm okay...Andrew, I, I'm really, really sorry..."

Andrew held up his hand to silence his young charge and after having made sure his best friend was warm and comfortable, the older angel quietly walked down the steps of their train car so that he could talk to Kevin in private without waking Monica up,

"I know you are, Kev...I do..." He lowered his head for a moment before he continued in a cool whisper,

"But why? You knew that Thorn was dangerous, Kev..."

"I know, Andrew," Kevin lowered his head in shame as he took a seat on the first step and ran a shaky hand through his hair. He looked up as he watched his supervisor and friend take a seat next to him,

"I know I betrayed you, not once, but twice in the past month and a half, and I feel terrible about it...it wasn't until recently that I realized what a fool I was for staying here, and not believing you about Thorn. I should've just looked at the evidence, but I didn't...instead, because I stayed, you ended up arrested, and..." The youngest angel's voice choked up as he spoke,

"And Cupcake was nearly killed. I almost lost the two angels I love most twice in one month, and I'll never forgive myself."

Andrew was quiet for a moment, before he spoke up again. Though there was no anger in his voice, it was heavy with disappointment,

"Kevin, I'm not angry with you, please understand that. We all have choices to make and we don't always make the right ones, but at the same time, I need to be honest," Seeing Kevin nod his head miserably, he continued,

"I don't know what disappointed me the most. The fact that the very first thing we agreed on was staying together, because of the danger, because of the situation. But the very next day, Kev, you turned away from us in order to stay here…"

"I didn't realize what Thorn had tried to do that day…to you and to Cupcake, until he told me and by then you were already gone…" He tried to defend his actions, knowing that the attempt sounded pitiful, even to him.

"Why should that have mattered, Kevin? I said it wasn't safe to stay and you heard Thorn threaten Monica and I. What other reason did you need?" Not getting an answer, Andrew continued wearily,

"The other thing about this that I'm having trouble with is that had you stayed with us, so much of this could have been avoided. I very well may have still wound up arrested, but Monica would be in much better shape than she is right now. I could have left her with you while I went to find medicine for her, but as you weren't there, I couldn't leave her alone as she was petrified, especially after what Thorn did and his threats. Had you been there, you both would have been safe," He drew in a deep breath and laid a hand on Kevin's shoulder,

"To work together, Wonder Boy, we have to be able to trust each other and I won't say that my trust in you is gone, but it certainly is strained at the moment."

Kevin let out a shaky breath as he lowered his guilt-filled eyes to the ground,

"I never meant to make it seem like I didn't trust you about this, Simba...I honestly didn't mean it..."

"I know that, Kev," Andrew reassured him as he removed his hand from his youngest charge's shoulder,

"And if we work together, I'm sure this strained trust in us can be repaired. But that's only if we stay together from now on, Wonder Boy...do we have a deal?"

Nodding his head tearfully, Kevin soon felt his supervisor wrap his arms tightly around him and hug him. Embracing him back with trembling arms, his heart still filled with so much guilt, the youngest angel whispered sadly,

"I'm so, so sorry..." He kept repeating over and over again.

Unbeknownst to the two human angels, another figure was standing off to the side of the train car and Paddy's brown eyes were filled with the utmost anger as he listened in on the conversation. How dare they disguise themselves as runaways, when they were really sent to bring him back home? Clenching and unclenching his fists in anger, the teenager made a vow to himself that someday soon he was going to get even.

Andrew laid awake late that night, gently bathing his best friend's feverish forehead with a cool cloth in hopes of getting her fever to break or to at least wake her up as he was getting concerned. He had already tended to the deep stab wound on her hand and though she had whimpered slightly in pain, she had never woken up. He couldn't help but wonder if she felt safe in the darkened world where she was now and that was the reason she had yet to come to.

Sighing softly, he tenderly wiped the cool cloth along her cheek, his eyes widening as she left out a soft moan and her eyelashes fluttered, before she painfully opened her dark eyes.

Tears filled his eyes as he smiled down at her,

"Hey there, beautiful," He whispered softly to her.

Looking up at him, Monica managed a weak smile as she closed her eyes once more,

"Either I'm dreaming, or I'm Home…" She uttered, her voice hoarse.

Sadness filled his eyes for a moment as he laid the cloth on her feverish forehead,

"We're not Home, baby," He told her regretfully, as he stroked her hair back from her face, wishing he could tell her otherwise.

"But you're here," She replied softly,

"And that is close enough to Home for me right now."

The tears made their way down his face slowly as he nodded his head,

"And I'm just so relieved you finally woke up...you've been out of it since yesterday, baby..." Seeing the shock evident in her pain-filled eyes, he asked her softly,

"Do you remember what happened earlier, sweetheart?"

"Not a whole heck of a lot, Andy..." Monica lifted a shaky hand and rested it against her forehead and touched the cool cloth,,

"I...I mainly remember two gang members, and..." She stopped as she let out a shaky cough and her face paled slightly as she said the last few words,

"And a...a knife...I remember kicking him in the crotch."

His green eyes widening in surprise, Andrew was unable to hold back a chuckle as he shook his head and rested his head against hers gently,

"Man, first you break Keyser's nose and now you wop someone in the crotch; you're getting good there, Angel Girl..."

Managing to giggle as well, Monica reached with her non-wounded hand and grasped her best friend's hand in her own,

"I'm so glad you're okay now..."

"Mr. Manson cleared my name and then I led them to the real culprit. Thorn is in jail now and you have nothing to fear from him any longer," He told her with a gentle smile. He wondered if he should tell her about Hotrod now or wait until she was feeling a little bit better.

"And Kevin?" She asked weakly, her eyes searching his.

"He's fine. Sound asleep over there in the corner. He'll probably want to talk to you later as he's feeling pretty badly," Seeing her nod her head as she closed her eyes again for a moment, he caressed her cheek gently,

"How are you feeling?"

"Not great," She admitted, trying to move the fingers on her left hand and wincing at the pain that shot through her.

"Then lets get some medicine in you, okay?" Carefully, he helped her to sit up, keeping his arm around her for support as he handed her a few tablets and a cup of water.

Monica sighed softly as she looked up at him,

"I'm sorry about this. We have enough going on without you having to take time out to take care of me."

Smiling slightly in her direction, Andrew set the empty cup on the floor next to them and watched as she carefully leaned back into his arms and rested her head against his shoulder. Wrapping a gentle arm around her shoulder and allowing her to lean into him, the older angel whispered,

"You have nothing to be sorry for, sweet baby; in fact, I remember telling you once that I love taking care of you and now is no exception." Resting his cheek on her head, he sighed softly and closed his eyes for a brief moment until the little Irish angel spoke up weakly.

"Something's wrong, though, Andrew..." She uttered, wincing once again at the pain in her hand,

"I know something is wrong..."

Nodding his head, Andrew helped his best friend to lay back down under the blankets and gently grasped her right hand in his, bringing it to his lips and kissing it softly,

"Sweetheart...Hotrod was killed yesterday while I was still in jail. Thorn...the cops and I found his body this afternoon, and Thorn confessed to killing him..." The human angel lowered his head to the ground and tried to blink back a round of hot tears for the sake of his best friend.

Monica closed her eyes at this news as she turned her head away to hide tears, her heart breaking for the little boy,

"Why are humans so cruel to each other, Andy?" She whispered sadly.

Finding his own blanket, he lay down beside of her and waited until she had curled into his arms, her bandaged hand lying on his chest,

"I wish I knew, little one. If we had the answer to that I guess we'd be out of jobs though."

"Days like yesterday can make me wish we were, Andrew," She replied, trying to shake the feeling of defeat she was feeling,

"I feel tired right down to my soul…"

"Me, too, sweetheart, me too..." And with that, he felt the rising and falling of his best friend's chest and he knew that she was sound asleep. With a tired sigh, the older angel closed his green eyes and before long was asleep too.

_Written by: CI and KP_

Kevin opened his eyes early the next morning and rolled over to see that his two friends were still sound asleep on the other side of the room. Groaning softly, Kevin moved his wrist to the light check his watch and plopped back down on the blankets as he noticed the time: 6:00AM,

'What am I doing awake at this hour?' He thought to himself. But as he closed his brown eyes again, he suddenly remembered something that he had forgotten to do the previous night and it caused the angel's stomach to clench.

'I forgot to tell Andrew about Paddy...' He thought again, shaking his head at his carelessness,

'I'm gonna have to tell him as soon as he gets up...' With a groan, the youngest angel shoved off of the blanket and got to his feet, heading towards the door of the boxcar and as he opened it, he watched as the sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon and a feeling of sadness crept into his heart that none of them where at Home like they wished.

Sinking down on the front step of the train car, Kevin rested his chin in his hands as he mentally prepared himself for telling his supervisor the rest of the truth from the last few days.

"Kev?" Andrew's sleepy voice sounded from behind him as the older angel came and took a seat next to his youngest charge,

"You're up early. Are you okay?"

Kevin managed a small smile as he nodded his head,

"I woke up remembering that there was something rather important you needed to know and I can't believe I forgot to tell you yesterday. I guess I was just so glad to see you and so worried about Cupcake…"

"What is it, Kevin?" Andrew interrupted gently, his eyes meeting Kevin's.

"Patrick is here. He turned up with Thorn the other day…"

Andrew's eyes widened in surprise at this news, though he felt a huge sense of relief. Now if they could just get the kid to go home, then maybe the three of them could too,

"Well, that certainly makes our jobs a little easier."

Sighing in relief that his friend wasn't upset with him, Kevin looked him in the eye and asked softly,

"So you're not upset with me for forgetting to tell you...?"

His eyes widening even more at the question, Andrew turned all the way around and looked firmly at his youngest friend,

"No. I am not angry at you; in fact, I'm-"

"Well, Emerald and Ice are up early."

Andrew stopped talking in mid-sentence as he heard Patrick's voice behind him and with a deep breath, he turned around and looked at the teenager for the first time since he had left the Sullivan house several days ago. The angel attempted to put aside his worries that Paddy may recognize him for who he really was, Andrew rose to his feet and smiled tiredly,

"I just came outside to talk to my friend. You're Patrick then, huh?"

"That's right, but I go by Pat," He replied, eyeing Andrew coolly.

Andrew was unable to miss the mistrust in Paddy's eyes and for a moment, he was sure that their identity had been given away,

"Well, glad to meet you, Pat. Fawn is still asleep or I'd introduce you. She hasn't been feeling very well the last few days."

"I guess I'll meet her later then," He replied with a shrug,

"I'm headed out to find breakfast. Want to come along, Ice?"

Glancing over at Andrew and seeing him nod his head, Kevin grinned in agreement,

"Food sounds great. I'm not sure when the last time was I had something to be honest."

Though he had a meal in the jail cell the other day, Andrew nodded his head,

"If you find anything, and can bring some back, that would be great. I'm kind of hungry and I don't think Fawn has had anything in a few days either."

"Sure, whatever, Emerald," Paddy nodded his head and as Kevin caught up with him, the teenager glaced back over his shoulder at the angel,

"Catch you later." Now completely ignoring him, the duo headed off, and as Andrew watched them depart, he couldn't get the feeling out of his stomach that they had been recognized.

"So you and Emerald back there are friends or something?" Patrick commented as the angel and the teenager started down the street in search of breakfast,

"You two seem to know one another well."

"Yeah, he and Fawn are my best friends, and I've known them for a while...or rather, as long as I can possibly know them considering I'm still young," Kevin let out a small chuckle but stopped as he noticed that Paddy didn't so much as crack a smile.

Reaching into his pocket, Paddy pulled out a thickly rolled joint and lit the end of it, inhaling it as the air filled with the sweet smell,

"You want a hit?" He offered Kevin.

Horrified by what Paddy was doing, Kevin shook his head,

"No thanks, man, I'm not into drugs."

"That's too bad. It would do wonders for that guilt complex you are carrying around with you," He replied, taking another hit and holding the smoke in his lungs for a moment before finally exhaling.

"Guilt?" Kevin asked, completely perplexed.

"Yeah, Hotrod told me before he died that you stood up your two best buddies back there to stay behind with Thorn. That was a low blow, man. You must feel terrible, especially considering Emerald got arrested and Fawn was almost killed."

Flinching slightly at the reminder of just how awful he did feel, Kevin folded his arms across his chest and pulled his thin jacket tighter around him to try and keep himself warm,

"Maybe so...but it'll go away eventually..."

"It doesn't always go away, Ice," Paddy shook his head as he took another hit of the joint,

"But then, I could be wrong. I ran away from home just a few days ago because nobody understood me, or where I was coming from and my stupid parents thought that they could lock me up in my room for the rest of my life, but it didn't work. They figured the guilt trip would help instead, but once again, it didn't work, so I figured, the hell with them! I hold no regrets to it whatsoever; but I can see it on your face that this guilt isn't gonna leave you any time soon...Trust me on this." He held up the joint in between his fingers and grinned,

"This really did help me."

"I'm sure your parents did what they did because they love you, Pat," Kevin offered, trying to stay on solid ground,  
"It certainly doesn't sound like they were abusing you or anything."

"Whatever," Paddy replied gruffly,  
"But then again, things aren't always what they seem," He shot an angry glance at Kevin.

The look Paddy gave him, chilled the young angel to the bone as he was starting to get the feeling that Paddy was onto them, though he had no idea how that could have happened. He was trying to regain his senses when Patrick spoke up once more.

"Sure you don't want a hit?" He asked, offering the joint one more time. Seeing Kevin decline with a shake of his head, he scowled,  
"You're such a wimp, ICE." Turning on his heel, Paddy headed off in the opposite direction, leaving the angel standing there.

More certain now, Kevin debated going back to tell Andrew his suspicions, but remembering how hungry they all were, he decided to find food first. That would give him a little time to talk to the Father as well about his mistakes as well as his suspicions.

Andrew's stomach growled as he bathed Monica's forehead once again with the damp washcloth next to him, and he let out a quiet sigh so as to not wake up his best friend from her peaceful sleep. It had been a few hours since Kevin and Patrick had gone to hunt for some food, and the angel had yet to hear from his friend or their assignment. A concerened frown crossed his tired face as he wondered what could be keeping them.

Before he could continue contemplating over where they were, Andrew heard the door to the traincar creek open and his charge's head poked inside, but Paddy was nowhere to be seen. Sighing in relief that his friend was back safely, Andrew offered Kevin a small smile as he nodded his head,

"There you are, Kev. Where's Paddy?" He asked as he rung out the washcloth before laying it across Monica's forehead once again.

Sighing heavily, the youngest angel came inside and shut the door tightly before setting down a bag of food he held in his hand,

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about, Andrew...some strange things happened earlier, and I need your advice." A pleading look crossed the caseworker's young face as he looked at his supervisor.

"What happened, Kevin?" Andrew asked, his own concerns about Paddy's behavior earlier now coming to the surface.

Taking a seat near his friends and keeping his voice quiet, Kevin drew in a deep breath,

"First off, he's smoking marijuana, but the worst part is…Simba, I get the feeling he knows who we are and he is not happy about the situation."

"Who knows who we are?" Monica asked sleepily, opening her tired brown eyes to look at her two friends.

"Hey Cupcake," Kevin's expression softened at finally being able to talk to his friend since she and Andrew had returned,

"I'm glad you're gonna be okay."

"Thanks, Kev," She replied with a small smile,

"I'm glad you're okay too, but what are you talking about? Who knows who we are?"

"Paddy," The youngest angel replied, watching as Monica's eyes widened,

"He arrived while you two were gone."

"What makes you think he knows, Kevin?" Andrew asked, pulling a blanket over his best friend who had just moved to rest her head in his lap.

"Just by a few of the things he said and how he said them," Kevin explained, looking at his two friends in turn,

"He made a remark about 'things not always being what they seem' and then when I wouldn't get high with him, he told me I was a wimp and kind of shot the name 'Ice' at me like it was a joke. Then he took off."

Andrew's green eyes widened in surprise and he fell silent for a few short moments as his hand stroked Monica's tangled auburn hair,

"How in the world could he have found out, Kev...?"

"That's what I'd like to know," The youngest angel frowned in worry as he rested his chin the palm of his hand,

"Either he's smarter then we thought and can see right through us, or he overheard a conversation between us...that's all that I can think of right now."

"Andrew, when are we gonna be telling Jane and JR who we really are?" Monica asked sleepily, lifting her eyes to meet her best friend's green ones,

"Maybe that'll help bring Paddy around if he's as angry as Kevin says he is..."

"The Father hasn't told me yet, little one," Andrew sighed heavily as he leaned up against the wall,

"But it should be soon...this can only go on for so long before Patrick explodes and reveals that he does know who we are.

Her heart feeling heavy once more, Monica rested her wounded hand on Andrew's knee, wincing at the pain of moving it,

"If he knows who we are, then why are we here?"

Not knowing how to answer her question, Andrew chose to bypass it for the moment until he could think of something,

"I got an uneasy feeling this morning that Patrick recognized us as well," He admitted finally,

"Maybe he heard us talking last night, Kevin, as we had the door open. He seemed almost angry this morning before you two left."

"He's angry and very bitter," Kevin replied heavily,

"And if he knows who we are, we'll never gain his trust enough to get him to go home. If he knows the truth about us, it just looks like we are lying to him."

Andrew closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath before attempting to answer Monica's question, as she was still looking up at him with worried eyes,

"I wish I knew why we're still here, you two...but I don't. I honestly don't. Maybe the Father wants us to get through to Jane and JR instead; I don't think Paddy finding out about us was part of His plan, but that's just my thought..." He sighed deeply as he shook his head sadly.

"So what now?" Kevin shrugged his shoulders helplessly as he looked between his two friends.

"The only thing I suggest right now is to wait and see how this all plays out before we reveal ourselves. That's all I can offer..."

_Written by: CI and KP_

"Hey guys," Jane said softly, popping her head in their car early that evening,

"JR and I have some apples and brought you guys some."

Andrew smiled as the twosome climbed up into the car, and he looked from changing the wrapping on Monica's hand,

"Where have you guys been?"

"Hiding," JR admitted truthfully,

"Ever since what happened with Hotrod…." His voice trailed off as he looked at the floor.

"Thorn is in jail," Kevin offered, looking at each one of them,

"He isn't a threat here any longer."

Sighing in relief, Jane rested her chin in her hand and whispered,

"Well that's a major relief... I just didn't want anyone else to get hurt after what happened to Hotrod, Fawn and Emerald..." A sad look crossed the young girl's face before she spoke up again,

"Have any of you seen Pat?"

Exchanging a look with Andrew and Monica, Kevin whispered tiredly,

"Not since this afternoon to tell you the truth...he left and didn't come back."

"Well, I guess he'll return when he returns," JR shrugged his shoulders and folded his hands in his lap,

"He's not really our problem right now; from what I've seen of Pat the last few days, he's almost as stubborn as Thorn is."

"If not worse..." Kevin grumbled to himself.

"Stubborn isn't the word for it," Jane replied tensely,

"I kind of wish he'd just move on as well. I trust you guys, but Pat is a little strange for me."

"You can say that again," JR remarked disdainfully,

"He's starting to get heavy into the drug scene as well and I'd rather not have him around here if it's okay with you guys."

Monica's dark eyes filled with sadness as she looked away, thinking of how it hadn't always been that way. She could recall much happier days with when the three little triplets had rushed to the door to greet she and Andrew when they would visit when the kids were smaller. Paddy had always been happy go lucky back then, full of life and mischief, tormenting his sisters, but so much had changed so quickly and she could think of nothing to do to stop it,

"Maybe we can help him?" She offered softly, not meeting anyone's gaze.

"You can try if you want to, Fawn," JR shrugged his shoulders again,

"But I'm not going anywhere near him...but if you, Emerald and Ice want to try and help him, be my guest. Nobody's stopping you."

Cringing a little at the teen's words, Kevin lowered his head as he sighed softly,

"I already tried this morning, JR, and all he wanted to do was make me try marijuana with him." He drew in a sharp breath as he kept his eyes away from his friends,

"I'm not sure if I'm the right kid to talk to him anymore..."

"You never told me he tried to get you hooked on the drugs, Kevin!" Andrew cried as he stared wide-eyed at his young friend.

"Yeah, I did," Kevin replied softly,

"I said when I wouldn't get high with him, he called me a 'wimp'."

Knowing he had somehow missed that part of the story, Andrew felt a shudder go up his spine. If Patrick knew the truth, he would already have known that there was no way Kevin would do something like that, so why would he even offer? Unless he was trying to take advantage of the less experienced angel in order to get even with them for being here in the first place,

"I'm proud of you, Kev, for telling him no," He replied softly, looking at his youngest charge.

Though Kevin didn't reply, his eyes shimmered briefly with tears, not feeling worthy of any praise from his friend and supervisor with the guilt still running through him about what he had done. He may have been thinking straight enough to tell Paddy "No" but he certainly hadn't been thinking straight in letting his friends move on without him.

"I'm going to talk to him," Monica spoke up quietly, breaking the silence,

"We can't just write him off."

Grasping his best friend's right hand in his and giving it a gentle squeeze, Andrew met her eyes with his steadily and replied,

"If you're planning on talking to him, then I'm going with you, all right?"

Although she was about to object, as she was a bit frightened about facing the teenager, the Irish angel reluctantly nodded her head and whispered miserably,

"All right."

Late the next morning, Monica was the first to wake up and with a yawn, she first realized that she didn't feel as terrible as she did the previous day. Although her hand still hurt tremendously from the knife wound, the rest of her body didn't feel so weak. Raising her head from the pillow, she noticed that Andrew and Kevin were already awake, and that Jane and JR had already headed back to their own traincar.

Noticing that his best friend was looking at him, the oldest of the three turned around and immediately headed to her side, kneeling down in front of her,

"How are you doing this morning, sweetie?"

Attempting a smile for him, she nodded her head,

"Better, my friend. Better..." She fell silent for a moment before she continued, her voice now shaking slightly,

"I think...I think I want to talk to Patrick now, and get it over with, you know?"

"I heard him come back this morning," Kevin offered with a sigh,

"So, I'm sure he is around here someplace. You guys, be careful, all right? He isn't the same Paddy we once knew and I don't want either of you getting hurt."

"It'll be fine, Kevin," Andrew assured him, as he rose to his feet and extended his hand to Monica to help her to hers. He kept a tight hold on her right hand as they exited the car, feeling the fear in her and feeling a little nervous himself.

It didn't take them long to find him and Andrew could instantly tell that the teenager was strung out on something that judging by the look of him, had to be more than marijuana,

"Good morning, Pat," He called out as they approached him, not wanting to startle him,

"We were hoping we might be able to talk to you for a few minutes."

Patrick regarded them in cold silence for a moment, before replying,

"I'll bet you do."

Taking a seat in front of him, all the while keeping a gentle hold on his best friend, Andrew flinched somewhat as he tried to find the correct words to say,

"What makes you think it's anything bad, Pat?"

"Oh maybe because your little friend, Ice, probably blabbed to you all about me wanting him to get strung out on the good stuff," Patrick replied, leaning against a rock and taking a whiff of the marijuana in his hand,

"He did, didn't he?"

"Okay, so he did...but there's other stuff we wanta talk to you about, Pat-" Andrew continued as gently as possible, but was cut off by the teenager.

"Like what? About you two being angels, and that you're going to try and get me come back home? Is that it, ANDREW?" Paddy snapped as he glared harshly at the two human angels.

Monica felt her stomach lurch at Patrick's words as she felt her spirit weakening even more. But she knew she had to try; this boy was Cindy and Brady's son and even more than that, Patrick Hendrickson's grandson, a human she had loved more than she had ever loved any other. Besides that, she reminded herself, Paddy was God's child, regardless of how hateful he was being right now,

"Yes, Paddy, you are absolutely right, but we're here because God sent us because He loves and we love you and your family loves you. They are worried sick about you and if it is help you need, they can get it for you, for the drugs, for the alcohol, for the anger you're feeling. Whatever it takes, but you have to give them a chance."

"She's right, Paddy," Andrew added as gently as he could,

"But you have to come home in order to give them the chance. The streets are dangerous; you know that as Hotrod was killed yesterday. There are other Thorns out there who are just looking for someone to take their anger out on and one day that someone could be you."

"Just stay away from me, all right?" Paddy snapped angrily,

"I've had it with angels and with my family! I'm done, you got that?"

"Paddy…" Monica pleaded softly, reaching out a hand to touch his arm, but she drew it back in fear as the teenager, who had once loved them, pulled out a knife and pointed it at her.

"I said, stay back!" He yelled, his face red with anger.

Andrew's face paled as he wrapped his arms tightly around his best friend and held her as he looked in shock over at Paddy,

"Patrick, you don't mean this-"

"Just stay back, or I'll...I'll do something I'll regret!" The teenager lashed out as he waved the knife around in front of the two angels. The commotion going on outside caused JR and Jane to bolt out of the boxcar, while Kevin ran down the steps of the other one, and as soon as the two teens and one angel saw the knife, Andrew yelled over to them.

"Stay back! Just stay back, all right?"

As the two younger kids nodded their heads in horror, Andrew backed away from Patrick with Monica still in his arms and tried his hardest to calm the teen down,

"Patrick, please...just set the knife down and let us talk about this, okay?"

"There's nobody I want to talk to anymore!" He yelled in fury as he glared harshly at Andrew,

"Nobody, you hear me?! In fact, I don't see why there's any point of living anymore!"

Monica's tear-filled eyes widened in shock as she tried to pull away from Andrew to stop Paddy, but her best friend held tightly to her,

"Paddy, this isn't the answer, you know that!" She pleaded, her voice catching in a sob,

"Think about your parents and your sisters; how are they ever going to understand this?"

Patrick looked at her calmly as he replied,

"You're the angels. You figure that out," As soon as the words were said, the teenager turned the knife on himself and plunged it deeply into his heart as he collapsed on the ground.

Andrew suddenly felt as if he couldn't breath as he watched in horror what Patrick had just done, the angel's face deathly pale. So focused on his own disbelief and incredible sorrow, it took him a moment to realize that Monica was screaming, seemingly unable to stop as she cried out the teenager's name again and again.

As the Irish angel's screams slowly turned into heart-wrenching sobs, Andrew caught her in his arms as she collapsed to the ground and he felt himself being dragged down with her. As his own tears flowed nonstop, he looked horror-struck over his best friend's head as he saw an Angel of Death he didn't know by name stoop down to Patrick and lean over him.

Feeling like he was going to throw up, Andrew covered his mouth with one hand as he watched through blurred vision as the Angel of Death glanced over at him and then at Monica, before turning to Patrick's spirit,

"Patrick?" He called the teen's name and watched as Paddy's dark eyes opened in surprise and looked up at the angel.

"What...happened?" He uttered somewhat wearily,

"Who are you? What happened to me?"

Sighing sadly, the Angel of Death laid a hand on the teenager's shoulder as he answered the question,

"You're dead, Patrick. You just killed yourself."

Patrick swallowed hard as he looked up at the angel,

"So what happens now?"

"That is up to you," The angel replied gently, looking at the spirit of the teenager,

"Do you ask God's forgiveness for the things that you have done?"

Patrick was quiet for a moment as he looked over at the two angels who had just tried to talk to him only moments ago. Though sobbing himself, Andrew was rocking Monica gently in his arms, as she too wept violently, her face hidden against the older angel's shoulder.

Tears stinging his eyes, Patrick looked up at the Angel of Death and whispered shakily,

"Yes…"

"Then it's time to go Home, Patrick," The angel replied as he put his arm around Patrick's shoulder, preparing to lead him into the bright light.

Turning around one final time, Patrick's eyes met with Andrew's as he whispered,

"I'm sorry…" Before allowing the angel to lead him home.

_Written by: CI and KP_

Kevin felt as if the world had come crashing down on him as he stood rooted to his spot, watching with tear-filled eyes as the Angel of Death lead Patrick Home, and then his tortured brown eyes came upon his two best friends and with a sob, the youngest angel ran as fast as his legs could carry him to them. As he knelt down beside the two weeping angels, Monica's hands clutching Andrew's shirt and repeating Patrick's name over and over again, Kevin wasn't sure of what to say at the moment as he was in too much of a shock.

Shooting a quick glance over his shoulder at JR and Jane, Kevin turned away before his eyes could meet them and spoke for the first time to his friends,

"Now what?" He weakly asked, his voice laced with tears.

"I don't know..." Andrew sobbed as he looked over Monica's head at his youngest charge, who he continued to rock in his arms,

"I don't know..."

No sooner had Andrew said the words, did Kevin realize something had changed. He was now back in his normal human form and looking over at his two friends, he saw that they were too, though their tears had not stopped nor their positions changed. Knowing what he had to do, the youngest angel turned with tear-filled eyes to Jane and JR, as the light of God's love surrounded him,

"Don't be afraid," He said gently, the Father's love giving him strength,

"We're angels, sent by God. We were sent to help Patrick, who was a good friend of ours, but now God wants me to give the two of you a message."

Jane's eyes were wide as she reached over and grasped JR's hand,

"Angels?" She managed to choke out.

"Yes, Robin. God sent me with a message for both you and that is that it is time to stop running and time to go home. To the parents that God entrusted you to. He knows that you may not always see eye to eye, but that is part of growing up. God doesn't want to see any of His children lost or hungry or cold. He doesn't want to see you in danger and you are in danger if you chose to stay out here," A teary smile appeared on the angel's face as he continued,

"God loves you and He wants you to be safe."

"Why would He love us now?" Jane choked out through her tears as she tightened her hold on her friend's hand,

"My parents...they have trouble believing in God, you know...and I've always doubted His Love..."

"But it's true," The young angel whispered tearfully,

"Everyone has moments of doubting His Love. Believe me, the three of us have had our share..." He looked over at his two closest friends before turning back to their assignments,

"But He will never stop loving you, and He is really proud of you as well for the help you tried to give to His angels these last few days."

Sniffing, Jane glanced at JR and then back at Kevin before speaking up again,

"But...but how do we get home? I've been on the streets for a long time, and...and I don't have enough money..."

"Check your pockets, Robin. You too, Jim," Kevin replied softly as he nodded his head. As the two humans did so, he smiled weakly as they pulled out two bus tickets,

"God really does want you to go home now. Today. Your parents and your siblings are waiting for you there, in the same place you left them."

Turning to look at his friend, Jim said softly,

"Are you ready to go home?"

Robin nodded her head tearfully,

"Yeah, I am. I really am." Turning once more to Kevin, she managed a smile,

"Thank you….and we're sorry about your friend."

"He's with the Father now," Kevin replied softly and as the two teens turned to leave, he felt the glow around him begin to fade. Turning back to his two friends, who still seemed in shock over what happened as Andrew continued to clutch Monica tightly to him, he approached them quietly,

"The Father says it is time to go Home, you guys. Paddy will be found before the day is through and he has ID on him, so Cindy and Brady will be notified…" His voice trembled slightly as he related the words the Father was telling him.

Although his two friends never spoke as their sobs seemed to quiet, Kevin forced back his tears again as he watched Andrew nod his head weakly before pulling away from his best friend. As he shakily rose to his feet, pulling Monica up with him, Kevin watched as he wrapped his arm tightly around her shoulders, his green eyes pooling with hot tears. With a shaky breath, the youngest of the trio approached them and took Andrew's shaking hand in his own and with a final glance back at the trainyard that had been their "home" the past few days, the three angels disappeared.

"The Father said you needed to see me?" Tess asked quietly as she met up with Rose some time later in a grassy field. Her dark eyes held deep concern as she faced the eldest angel.

Nodding her head numbly, the Search and Rescue supervisor faced Tess for the first time since that day Sam had taken her away and looked deep into her eyes,

"Yes...I do. Tess, I have some bad news, and we have to share it with Brady and Cindy immediately."

"Did something happen to my babies, Rose?" The slightly younger angel asked somewhat shakily.

"No...they're physically all right, but..." She stopped and lowered her eyes to the ground before raising her head and looking back at Tess,

"Patrick isn't. Oh Tess, he killed himself just a few hours ago, and our friends have been sent Home for the time being, while we have to deliver this news to the Sullivan's..."

"Oh dear God in heaven," Tess uttered weakly, trying to adjust to the words Rose was telling her,  
"How did this happen?"

"Patrick somehow found out who Andrew, Monica and Kevin were and when Andrew and Monica tried to talk to him this morning, he just got angry and he pulled a knife on them before turning it on himself," Rose explained sadly.

"Brady's only son," Tess whispered softly with tears in her eyes,  
"And that sweet little Cindy has lost so much in her life. I just hope they can get through this.."

"I just hope everyone involved can get through this, Tess," Rose replied with a heavy sigh. Seeing the questions in her friend's eyes, she continued,  
"Andrew and Monica…they're devastated…beyond devastated, Tess. I've heard that their spirits are positively crushed by what happened. Kevin is holding his own to an extent, but a lot of things happened out there on the streets and he feels that he betrayed his two friends and he isn't taking that lightly. I just have this terrible feeling that the storm they've been fighting isn't over yet…"

"Now what?" Tess whispered as she lifted a hand to wipe at the tears streaming from her eyes,

"Those three babies are beyond heart-broken, and the Sullivan's..."

"We're called to head to their house, Tess," Rose sighed sadly as she felt her own vision blurring up,

"Andrew, Kevin and Monica are no longer on this case. The Father wants them to stay Home for now, so it's you and I that are to go there now. Are you ready, Tess?" The older of the two reached a trembling hand out and placed it on her friend's shoulder.

With a shaky breath, the supervisor gave her head a reluctant nod,

"As ready as I can possibly be right now, Rose..."

Cindy opened the door after hearing a knock and her red and swollen eyes grew wide at the sight of Rose and Tess. Shakily stepping out onto the porch, instead of inviting them in, she closed the door softly behind her,

"I guess you've heard…" She managed to choke out as another round of tears began to fall from her blue eyes.

"Oh baby, we're so sorry," Tess uttered, drawing the weeping human into her arms and holding her tightly,

"Just so, so sorry, sweetheart."

Laying a gentle hand on Cindy's shoulder, Rose spoke up softly,

"He's with the Father now, honey, and at peace…"

"I don't…I don't even know what happened," Cindy sobbed brokenly,

"The police weren't sure if he had been murdered or…"

"He took his own life, Cindy," Rose told her as gently as she possibly could,

"The decision was his."

Cindy closed her blue eyes in despair as she wept softly on Tess' shoulder,

"Why would he have done such a thing..."

"I don't know, honey...Monica, Andrew and Kevin tried to hard to get through to him, but Paddy was so filled with anger, that he woudn't listen," Rose whispered as she stroked Cindy's shoulder soothingly,

"In the end, their words just weren't enough..." The elderly angel closed her eyes as her voice suddenly became choked up.

Although she still couldn't bring her sobs under control, Cindy found the strength to pull away from Tess and she lowered her eyes to the ground,

"We...we have to head down and identify his body now..."

"Would you like us to come with you, or stay with the girls while you go?" Tess asked gently as she brushed a strand of hair out of Cindy's tear-streaked face.

"No, you can't…" Cindy uttered, trying to wipe at her eyes,

"Brady says he is finished with angels…he said he should have kicked them all out when he told Monica to get out…." She covered her face with her hands as she wept.

Rose's eyes widened in horror,

"He can't mean that, Cindy. Those angels are devastated by this…they love this family…we all do…."

"He does mean it…he does…." Cindy sobbed bitterly,

"And I don't know how I feel…I want to know if God wants anything else from me….He took my sister, my parents….is He coming after my daughters next or my husband….?"

"No, and it wasn't God's will that Paddy take his own life-" Rose started, but Cindy weakly interrupted through her tears.

"But he's still dead..." She continued to weep brokenly,

"I...I know I'm not angry at you...or Andrew and Monica..." Her voice broke on a sob,

"I love them so much...but Brady-Brady doesn't want you all around anymore...I honestly don't know what I'll do, but I know...I have to abide by his wishes..." She lifted a trembling hand to wipe as many tears away as she could,

"I-I'm so sorry..."

Exchanging horror-struck looks with one another, Tess was about to reply when Cindy continued through her sobs,

"I have to get back, Tess...Rose...Amy's father is coming over to t-take care of the girls while we head downtown...you should go, too..."

Tess nodded her head, blinking back tears,

"If you need anything, baby…."

"I know, Tess…I know…" Bursting into tears once more, she shook her head,

"I can't believe any of this….I lost my son and now I'm losing my friends….I'm going to miss you all so much….I love you all, but it has to be this way…"

As Cindy closed the door behind her, the two oldest angels exchanged a look between them,

"I can't believe what we have to tell those poor angel babies now…" Tess whispered.

"No sense putting it off, Tess," Rose replied sadly,

"Hopefully, the sooner they know, the sooner they might heal."


	2. Chapters 12-29

_Written by: CI and KP_

After they had finally arrived back Home, the first thing Andrew realized was that his two friends wanted to go their separate ways and he was shocked as well to realize that he wanted to be alone as well. He continued walking until he found a place to sit down and think, and soon he reached a beautiful tree which he slumped down underneath.

Although he knew that Patrick was finally at peace, and that he was safe in the Father's arms right now, that didn't do anything to comfort the angel right now. The look that Paddy had given him before he had walked away with the Angel of Death, and the last words he whispered, would forever be etched in Andrew's mind and guilt tore through him like never before. He was in far too much shock to cry anymore, and even if he felt like it, he knew that he had cried enough today to last him the rest of his existence.

As he sat down underneath the tree, Andrew wrapped his arms around his legs and rested his head in his folded arms; he was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't even see Rose walking slowly towards him, sadness showing plainly in her blue eyes.

Sitting down next to him the older angel looked at him sadly, plainly see the pain etched across his handsome face,

"How are you doing, honey?" She asked gently. Seeing him shrug his shoulders, she continued softly,

"We heard about what happened, Angel Boy. I'm sure the three of you did the best you could for Patrick, but you know as well as I do that our messages from the Father aren't always heard in time."

"I know," He whispered, shaking his head,

"I keep going over it in my head, again and again trying to think if there was anything more we could have done…Monica and I had only found out that morning that Paddy was even there…we barely had time to make a difference, before he…" He lowered his head once more in grief.

"I know, honey," Rose sighed sadly as she reached over and wrapped a gentle arm around his slumped shoulders,

"This wasn't part of His plan, Angel Boy; you do know that, right?"

"I guess..." Andrew whispered hoarsely, not once looking over at her as he continued staring straight ahead,

"But I guess I'm supposed to feel that way, right?" He lowered his head briefly to his arms and wiped the wetness off of his cheeks before he finally looked at his friend for the first time,

"How are Brady and Cindy handling all of this?"

Rubbing his shoulders soothingly, the elderly angel was silent for a few moments as she prayed for the right words to say, as she didn't want to cause Andrew to leave and be alone when he was so upset,

"Sweetheart...I have some more news I need to tell you. Tess and Carla are informing your two charges right now, and I need to tell you."

"This doesn't sound good, Rose," Andrew whispered, his eyes steadily meeting hers,

"Just don't tell me this assignment isn't over…I'm not sure any of us could take anymore right now…"

"No, honey, the assignment is over and you all three have time off," Rose reassured him. Drawing in a deep breath, she decided not to put it off any longer,

"As you can well imagine, Cindy and Brady are devastated as well. Tess and I saw Cindy earlier and well, Brady says he is finished with angels as he put it. We're being asked to honor his wishes, which means none of us will be attending the funeral. I'm sure he's just upset, Angel Boy and this will all blow over.."

Unable to hold back the tears that were forming in his green eyes any longer, Andrew turned his head sharply away from his friend and former supervisor and whispered shakily,

"So we may never see them again..."

"Angel Boy, don't say 'never'-"

"You said so yourself that they're through with angels," Andrew uttered, his eyes now looking up at the sky,

"You know that this type of thing has happened before...with Carol and Patrick, after Wendy died. They pushed us away...and now Brady and Cindy; Rose, why is this happening...?"

Shaking her head, Rose allowed her tears to trickle down her gentle face as she gently turned her younger friend's face towards her so that they're eyes met,

"I don't know, sweetheart; if I did, I would most certainly tell you..."

"I can't believe this…Monica and I have been a part of this family for close to 50 years, Rose and suddenly, that's it? It's over?" He uttered sadly.

"Just for the moment, honey. Brady just needs some time and is looking for someone to blame when in reality, there really is no one to blame. But better he blame angels than his family as they need each other right now. You just hang onto your Angel Girl right now, and Kevin as the three of you need each other. You'll see each other through all of this, I promise you will." Rose encouraged.

"I hope so, Rose," He whispered,

"I really hope so…"

As she gently wiped the tears away from his handsome face, Rose sighed softly before wrapping her friend up in her arms and holding onto him tightly, wishing that her arms could take away the pain he was feeling, but also knowing that only the Father Himself could do that.

"Angel Baby?"

Monica looked up to the sound of the familiar voice and nearly burst into a round of fresh tears at the sight of Tess standing beside her. Rising to her feet from where she sat by the clear blue crystal lake at Home, the little Irish angel headed as quickly as she could to her former supervisor and was almost immediately wrapped up in a tight hug,

"T-Tess...y-you heard..."

"Yes, baby," Tess whispered softly, holding onto her former charge tightly,

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart, I'm sorry you had to witness that."

"It…It was horrible, Tess," Monica sobbed brokenly,

"The whole last two months have been horrible and I don't understand most of it…we went to help Angel and it all wound up going so terribly wrong…"

"It seems that way, Angel Girl, doesn't it?" the older angel tried to soothe her younger friend, but it wasn't helping much and now to have to tell her this other news which would surely further break her already broken heart,

"Sweetheart, I'm afraid I have some more bad news…"

At those words, Monica felt herself stiffen up and she slowly pulled away from Tess and looked at her through blurred vision,

"What more could possibly go wrong?"

"Angel Girl, I think we should have a seat..." Tess offered as she placed a hand on her 'Angel Girl's' back and ushered back over to the edge of the lake where Monica was sitting before she arrived,

"Baby, I wish I didn't have to say this, but I have no choice..."

Noticing that the younger angel didn't say a word, Tess continued, her voice laced with deep sadness,

"Baby girl, Rose and I stopped by the Sullivan's after we heard about Paddy...Monica, Brady has come to the conclusion that he doesn't want any angels around the house anymore, and that he's through with them. I am so terribly sorry, Angel Girl, but that also means that we can't go to Paddy's funeral...none of us can..."

For several moments, Monica just starred at her friend through tear-filled eyes, before she spoke, trying to keep her emotions intact,

"Did we do something wrong, Tess? Did we fail this assignment?"

"No, Angel Girl…none of you failed-." Tess began but Monica cut her off.

"Doesn't Brady know that?" She demanded, rising to her feet, her entire body shaking.

"Deep down inside, I'm sure he does, baby, but he is grieving right now and angry…" Tess tried to say as calmly as she could, sensing her Angel Girl was anything but calm at the moment.

"Well, he isn't the only one!" Monica cried out, her grief and guilt causing her temper to explode,

"He doesn't have any right to keep us away! They're our family too!"

"I know you've always felt that way about them, Monica, you and Andrew both, but that doesn't make it the truth. They are humans and you are an angel and we have to honor what is being asked."

"Well I can't do that!" The Irish angel yelled, looking up at the older angel with angry eyes,

"I'm not staying away from Patrick's funeral or from the rest of the family-"

"Oh yes you are, Angel Girl," Tess interrupted, her voice though in control, was also filled with sympathy,

"Baby, you remember what happened when Wendy died, when we went against the Hendrickson's orders to stay away. The Father doesn't want that same mistake again-"

"So you think Brady's going to have a heart attack if I come? Is that it?" Monica snapped back, brushing back her former supervisor and started stomping away, but stopped as Tess called after her.

"I didn't say that, Monica; but you will be going against God's orders as well if you go to the funeral!" She firmly replied, wishing the younger angel would turn around and look at her,

"Brady is upset and angry right now, and we just need to give them all some space and then maybe he'll be thinking more clearly!"

So angry and hurt she could hardly see straight, Monica walked away, only stopping long enough to toss tearfully over her shoulder,

"And of course it is all about what Brady wants!"

Sighing softly, Tess turned away, knowing that had not gone well at all, not that she had expected it to, she only hoped Rose and Carla were having better luck.

"I can't believe this," Kevin uttered as he looked at Carla incredulously,

"They're done with us? We don't get to see them anymore?"

"Just not for now, Kev," Carla replied sadly, watching her friend worriedly,

"They've been through so much and they need a little time."

Running a hand through his brown hair, Kevin placed his head in his hands and shook his head miserably,

"This is completely my fault...all of it is my fault, Carla..."

"How can you say that, Kev?" The little blonde angel asked gently as she knelt down next to him and rested a hand on his shoulder,

"None of it is your fault-"

"Oh it is, Carla," The youngest angel whispered in reply as tears clouded his brown eyes,

"You weren't there when I betrayed Andrew for the second time in 2 months...when I betrayed both of my friends, and turned my back on them. Things could've gone much smoother if only I had trusted Andrew..."

"Kevin, I don't see how any of this stuff ties in…" Carla began, her green eyes filled with confusion.

"Let me spell it out for you, Carla," Kevin began sadly, looking into his friend's eyes,

"When Andrew had been burned, look at the horrible example I set for Paddy in dealing with Amy. Had he been reassured about going to her, instead of watching me avoid Andrew, maybe he would have made peace with what happened to Amy and have accepted part of the responsibility for it instead of getting so angry and lashing out at everyone. He did the same thing I did, Carla, don't you see that? I lashed out at Monica and Tess when they tried to talk to me about seeing Andrew, so what would make Paddy think it was not perfectly acceptable to do the same thing?"

Carla sighed sadly as she nodded her head,

"I wish I didn't, but I see your point…"

"Then I left them both because for some reason, I thought Thorn was cool, and Andrew winds up arrested and Monica is nearly stabbed to death and had we all just stayed together, there would have been more time to focus on Paddy. Instead we wind up with a day and half before he takes his own life, Carla!" Miserably, he lowered his head into his hands,

"And I know that Andrew nor Monica holds it against me, but I hold it against myself."

"You're right, none of us hold it against you, Kev...but sooner or later, you're going to have to forgive yourself," Carla gently told him as she rubbed his back soothingly,

"You won't be able to move on if you don't, and neither will Andrew and Monica. I know that they blame themselves as well..."

"Everything has just fallen apart, and I don't know if it will ever be the same again," The youngest Caseworker weakly replied, wiping at his face with his shaking hands,

"I know that God can do anything, and I know that He's forgiven me...but I don't have it in me to forgive myself..."

"Then I'll help you, Kev," Carla whispered through her own tears,

"I'll help you."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Cindy sat, sheet white in the car as she and Brady headed home from the hospital, having just identified the body of their only son. She was trembling from head to toe and silent tears streaked her cheeks and she was amazed that Brady had been able to remain strong, though his expression was clouded with grief and anger. Trying to find her voice, she spoke up softly,

"Tess and Rose were by earlier…they said Paddy killed himself…that Andrew and Monica tried to talk him out of it, but he wouldn't listen…"

"Cindy," He interrupted her gruffly,

"I never want to hear the names of any angels mentioned in my house, my car or my presence again. Are we clear on that?"

Shooting a tearful glance his way, she replied,

"They're my friends, Brady…for God's sake, Monica is all but my sister-."

"They were your friends and she was your sister," He replied angrily,

"Not anymore. Friends and sisters don't bring this kind of trouble wherever they go!"

"They didn't bring any trouble! They tried to help, Brady and you know it!"

"No, I don't know it!" Brady snapped, banging his hands down on the steering wheel and was about to continue when he saw his wife flinch and turn tearfully away from him. Hesitantly reaching a hand out, he touched Cindy on the shoulder as gently as he could,

"I'm sorry, Princess-"

"No, you're not sorry," Cindy shoved his hand away and glared over at him,

"What in the name of Heavens has gotten into you this past month? You aren't the husband I married anymore; and now you're telling me who I can be friends with. If you don't want them in your existence anymore, then fine. But you're NOT going to tell me who I can and can not see."

His face turning beat red, Brady inwardly fumed as he fought to keep his temper under control,

"Cindy, they were sent to HELP Patrick, not cause him to...to kill himself!"

"They didn't!" Cindy screamed as she found herself hyperventelating,

"How dare you even say such a thing about them, Andrew and Monica of all angels! I love them so much, and I've known them since I was a little girl! They did all they could without giving away their identity, and Patrick was high on drugs for Pete's sake! I saw the looks on Tess and Rose's faces when they showed up on our doorstep this afternoon...they were devestated, and so are Andrew, Monica and Kevin, just as much as we are!"

"Well, they should've tried harder," Brady fumed as he turned his eyes away from her and started to turn on the ignition and start the car up, but Cindy put her hand out and stopped him.

"We're not going back until we have settled this-"

"Yes we are," Brady interrupted, pushing her hand away and starting the car up again,

"We're getting out of here. Wendy and Angel are waiting back at the house." Shooting a quick glance at his furious wife, Brady sucked in a shaky breath as he saw her turn her head sharply away from him and looked out the car window,

"Cindy-"

"If you don't want to talk like a civilized human being, then that's fine with me," She whispered angrily, her tear-filled blue eyes never looking at him,

"Just take me home."

"You want to be that way, that's fine with me!" Brady snapped, as he pulled the car out of the parking lot.

"I just can't believe how soon you forget things! Our son is dead, Brady, and nothing is going to bring him back, ever! But for me to lose those angels as well might be more than I can handle! Have you forgotten how Monica gave herself to the darkness to spare our two daughters? Or how Andrew talked that monster into taking him as hostage and letting you and Angel go? Or how about the way they were there the whole time while dad was dying?" Cindy stated bitterly.

"Andrew never would have had to bail Angel and I out had Monica not walked into the man's office that day to tell him off, or have you forgotten that piece of it? Every time I turn around one of them is in trouble!" Brady snapped back at her,  
"I've nursed Monica back to health more times than I can count when she has gotten herself into trouble, and lets talk about how anytime something is wrong with Andrew, the whole house stops, despite the fact that my daughter is pregnant and my son is completely out of control-."

"They tried to help through all of that!" Cindy flared, her expression one of pure fury,  
"Kevin tried to talk to Patrick, Andrew tried to talk to Patrick! The problem is that he was as stubborn as his father is!" Immediately regretting saying anything negative about her son, Cindy lowered her face to her hands and began to sob once more.

Sighing softly, Brady reached over to lay a hand on her shoulder,  
"Sweetheart-."

Angrily, Cindy slapped his hand away,  
"Don't touch me!" She hissed at him as she turned her face away once more.

"Fine," Brady remarked darkly, his jaw set in anger,  
"But I meant what I said. From this day on, they are out of our lives."

Unbeknownst to either human, as the car fell silent, the little Irish angel sitting in the back seat, tears streaking her face over all that had been said, vanished from the car and their lives.

Wendy gently rocked Angel in her arms as both girls sobbed brokenly over the news of their brother's death. The twins had been up in Wendy's room for the past few hours, and neither had come down to face their parents or Amy's father after they had left for the hospital. In all honesty, Wendy was rather furious at her father at the moment; she hadn't meant to eavesdrop over their heated conversation earlier, but the teenager had heart every angry word coming out of her father's mouth about him no longer accepting Andrew, Monica, Kevin or the rest of their angelic friends in the house.

"This can't be happening..." Angel sobbed brokenly in her older sister's arms as she never lifted her head from where it rested on her shoulder,

"Wen, this isn't happening..."

Biting her lip as she wasn't sure of what to say at the moment, Wendy just buried her own face in her sister's hair and continued rocking her. Minutes ticked by before the blonde teen finally spoke up, her voice trembling madly,

"I'm going to miss them all so much...every last one of them...Paddy, Andrew, Monica..." Her voice broke off on a sob as she was unable to continue.

"Why would he k-kill himself like that? How could he be so selfish...?" Angel wept as she weakly pulled away from Wendy and looked through blurred vision at her,

"Wendy, what are we going to do...? We've...we've lost everything now..."

Before her twin sister could reply, the sound of shouting came from downstairs and both girls leapt off of the bed and raced to the bedroom door, opening it a crack so that they could listen. The words their mother spoke sent chills up Wendy's spine, and her heart once again filled with intense anger towards her father.

"Look, I for one have had it up to here with you, Brady!" Cindy snapped and the twins could tell from upstairs she she was trying hard to not burst into a round of fresh tears,

"I'm not about to stay in the same house with you, not after all of this! So if you don't mind, I'm heading to a motel for the next few days-"

"You want to talk about me not acting like a civilized human being, Cindy?" Brady shouted after her and watched as she turned sharply around to face him,

"Take a look at yourself! You can't even try to talk without yelling, while I've been trying to be reasonable-"

"ME? Brady Sullivan, our only son just commited suicide a few hours ago, and all you want to do is tell me who I can be friends with and who I can't!" Cindy snapped back, her voice tear-streaked and flushed red,

"You can't order me around, you got that? You want to talk about this being 'your house' and all that crap? Well, fine! It is your house, because I'm not coming back until I know full well that you're back to the husband I used to love!"

"That's fine! You go if you want to, but you aren't taking the girls!" Brady snapped back.

"You just watch me!" Cindy retorted through her tears.

Tears racing down Wendy's face, she furiously shut the door and turned the key, before turning back to Angel,  
"They want to act that way, that's fine," She said, choking on a sob,  
"But neither one of them are coming in here until they work this out."

Sinking down to the floor, Angel pulled her knees up to her chin and wrapped her arms around them, crying violently,  
"I…I don't understand…Paddy…."

Sitting down on the floor with her sister, Wendy wrapped her up in her embrace once more,  
"I know, Angel, I know…" She uttered, stroking her sister's hair.

"I want the angels, Wendy….I want Monica and Andrew…they'd be here for us instead of yelling at each other…" Angel whispered, covering her face with a hand,  
"Our brother is dead and they're down there screaming…do they think we can't hear them?!"

Struggling to find some way to calm them both down, Wendy rested her cheek against her sister's hair,  
"What do you think Andrew and Monica would say if they were here right now?"

Her breathing hitching from crying so hard, Angel tried to think, catching on to what Wendy was trying to do,  
"I…I think they'd tell us…that God loves us and He loves Paddy too and that Paddy is happy now…and they'd be…they'd be holding us really tight, Wen…and letting us know it was okay to cry…"

"And those words are true," Wendy whispered to her sister as she closed her own tear-filled eyes,

"No matter how hard they are to believe, they're true. Andrew and Monica have been in our existence for our entire lives, and we've learned to believe them. It's perfectly all right to cry, Angel...just let it out, okay?"

Choking on another sob as she buried her face into her sister's shoulder, Angel weakly asked,

"What about you?"

Drawing in a trembling breath, Wendy whispered back,

"My heart is broken too, Angel..." Feeling her twin sister wrap her arms around her in return, the girls rocked each other back and forth on the floor next to the door and sobbed. They didn't look up until they heard the knocking on the other side of the door and Brady's voice sounded.

"Wendy! Angelica! Come out, all right?"

Noticing that Angel was about to stand up, Wendy pulled her back down by the wrist and whispered,

"We're not letting them in, okay? Not until he and mom settle this bickering..."

"Girls?" Cindy called out as she tried to turn the door handle and finding it locked,

"Girls, open the door okay?"

"No, mom," Wendy uttered tearfully,

"Not until you and daddy stop bickering…"

Turning to her husband, Cindy's eyes flashed with anger,

"Now see what you've done! Like they aren't upset enough already!"

"What I've done?!" Brady started to snap back, but he was interrupted by Wendy's angry, tear filled voice.

"Just stop it, okay?" She all but screamed through the locked door,

"Whatever you're fighting about, just stop it! Angel and I lost our brother today and all you two want to do is scream at each other! You're not the only ones hurting over this; we loved him too! So stop being so selfish and be our parents because we need you!"

Fresh tears welled up in Cindy's eyes as the sound of her two daughters sobbing on the other side of the door. Swallowing her anger, she turned to her husband and spoke quietly,

"You and I…we can't do this right now. We still have two little girls in there that need us and we have a service to plan and things to do. Though I'm not happy with you right now, I can try to push it aside for their sakes so we can at least get through the next few days. Can you at least do the same?"

His face still red with anger, Brady backed away from his wife and the locked door and whispered,

"So you want to just drop this, is that it-"

"For now, Brady, yes!" Cindy snapped back, narrowing her eyes at her husband,

"Right now, I care more about our daughters then you, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes for them. Are you with me or not?"

Clenching and unclenching his fists, Brady glared angrily at his wife before answering her coldly,

"Fine." With that, the human turned on his heel and headed towards their study, closing and locking the door behind him. As he disappeared from sight, Cindy released the rest of her tears as she turned her blue eyes back to her daughter's bedroom.

"Girls, can you please come out now?"

Exchanging a look with her sister, both of them knowing that very little had gotten resolved between their parents, Wendy stood up and unlocked the door.

Hearing the door unlock, Cindy opened the door, fresh tears filling her eyes at the sight of her two daughters, their eyes swollen and red from crying. Sitting down on the bed, she opened her arms to them,

"Come here, my babies," She whispered, her voice catching in a sob, as both girls went to her and she closed her arms around them both,

"I love you both so much…"

"Mom, what is going on with you and dad?" Wendy sobbed brokenly.

"We're just going through a rough patch right now, sweetie, that's all. We all react differently when something like this happens, and I think your dad is just so mad right now, he doesn't know what to do."

"He's mad at the angels, right?" Angel wept as she clung tightly to her mother, burying her face into her shoulder,

"I heard all the things you two have said...and Wendy heard dad say that-that we can't s-see them anymore..." She choked on a sob and her shoulder shook violently.

"We ARE going to see them again, despite what your father says. He's not going to tell us who we can and cannot see, all right?" Cindy answered, looking at each of her daughters.

"I miss Andrew so much, mom..." Wendy pulled away from her mother's gently embrace and wiped at her heart-broken eyes,

"He and Paddy...Mom, why did Paddy have to go and kill himself? Why couldn't he see how much we l-loved him..."

"I don't know, sweetheart," Cindy shook her head miserably,

"Only God does...but know that it has nothing to do with the angels-"

"That's not what daddy says, although I don't believe a word of it," Wendy interrupted bitterly, her eyes showing anger towards her father,

"I don't want to be around him right now; not after the things he's said..."

"Wendy, you have to remember that your dad is grieving right now too and he still loves you both very much. I don't want you girls avoiding him as he needs you both right now as much as I do. He is not upset with either of you and we all need each other right now. Are we clear on that?" Cindy asked gently, looking at each of her daughters.

"Yes, mom," Angel whispered tearfully,

"And maybe soon he'll change his mind about the angels, though I really wish Monica and Andrew were here right now…"

"Me too, baby," Cindy whispered sadly,

"But lets give daddy some time and I'd really like you girls to go and see him. I think he needs that right about now."

As Angelica nodded her head in agreement and started slowly towards the door and towards their father's study, Cindy frowned in concern as Wendy stayed seated on the bed,

"Wendy, sweetheart-"

"I'm not seeing him, mom," She replied firmly, folding her arms across her chest,

"I'm not."

"Wendy, please don't make this any harder then it is..." Cindy started, rubbing her forehead with her fingers as she shook her head in despair,

"Your father needs both of you-"

"You may think he needs us, but he doesn't," The teenager stated bitterly, shaking her own head stubbornly,

"You and Angel can keep him." With tears streaming from her blue eyes, Wendy leapt to her feet and bolted from her bedroom, leaving Cindy alone.

_Written by: CI and KP_

"Hey, Angel Girl, I've been looking all over for you," Andrew remarked softly, his green eyes filled with sadness as he approached his best friend, who he had found walking in one of Heaven's beautiful meadows,

"I should have known I could find you here."

Monica looked up at him, her eyes red and swollen from crying, though she had no intention of telling him the things she had heard in Brady's car earlier. She wasn't supposed to have been there anyway and she was not about to hurt Andrew by repeating it,

"Why were you looking for me?" She asked softly, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Kevin is with Carla right now as far as I know and we've been given time off. I was thinking of heading to the cabin. I just wanted some quiet time alone with you after…after everything that has happened…" He finished, blinking back tears at the painful reminders.

Lowering her head, the Irish angel was quiet for a moment before she spoke up softly,

"Andrew…I really think I need to be by myself for awhile…"

His eyes widening at her words, Andrew felt like he had been punched in the stomach, but he refused to look hurt at the words she spoke,

"Did I...do something, Monica? Because if I did, I'm sorry-"

"Andy, no," Monica choked on a sob as her heart broke at the pain evident in her best friend's gentle eyes,

"No, you didn't do a thing. I just...I just need time by myself here, not down there on Earth..." Unable to see the pain in his eyes any more, the Irish angel turned around and started walking in the other direction, but she sensed Andrew still behind her, trying to catch up with her.

"Monica, please..." She heard his pleading voice behind her and it caused her to stop walking, although the tears never ended,

"Please, Angel Girl...please, just tell me what I did so I can make it right again..."

Turning to face him and knowing she owed him more of an explanation than she had given, she reached for his hands as she tried to steady her voice,

"You didn't do anything. Please know that and believe it, my friend. I would tell you if you did, but you've been wonderful," Blinking back more tears, she tried to find the words to explain,

"You know, I've always considered it to be a gift to be able to look into your eyes and know what you were thinking or feeling, until now…" Unsure of how to continue, she squeezed his hands tightly as a sob escaped her.

"Mon, what is it? Please tell me so I can help," Andrew pleaded, not wanting anything between them right now as he needed her so badly at the moment.

"Right now, I look at you and see all the things I'm feeling and they hurt twice as much, Andrew. We just went through the same horrible time together and because of that, I don't think I can even begin to heal being with you…" She bit her lip as her tear filled eyes looked away from him, hating the pain in his eyes.

His hands trembling slightly in shock over what he was hearing, Andrew slowly released the Irish angel's hands and was silent for a few moments before whispering sadly,

"That's how you really feel then...?"

Her heart breaking, Monica forced herself to nod her head and she lowered her auburn head to the ground,

"Yes. It is..." She looked up briefly and let out a choked sob at the tears streaming from his green eyes,

"I'm so sorry, my friend...I'm so sorry..."

Gulping, Andrew tried to remain as calm as possible as he whispered sadly,

"So am I, Angel Girl..."

As the two fell silent for a few tense moments, Andrew waited until she looked up at him, her eyes filled with deep sadness, until he spoke up again,

"Whenever you want to talk again..." With a shrug of his shoulders, he turned his eyes away briefly to hide his tears,

"Just tell me..."

Reaching out to grab his arm before he could walk away, the little Irish angel looked up into his handsome face,

"I never meant to hurt you with this…please know that."

"I guess…I guess I just took for granted that we were going to get through this together, Monica," He replied as steadily as he could,

"Just like we always do…"

Nodding her head, the tears never ending, she drew in a trembling breath,

"It's just been too much this time…I just don't think we'll be good for each other right now. Just give me a little time, that's all I'm asking for, Andy…it just hurts so badly right now and I know it does for you too, so how can we possibly be any good for each other at the moment?" Taking a step closer to him, she reached up and wiped at the wetness on his cheek,

"I love you so much…"

Nodding his head weakly, Andrew closed his eyes as he memorized the feel of her gentle hand on his cheek before he took a hesitant step forward and gave her forhead a soft kiss. As the tears made their way down his pale cheeks again, he looked through blurred vision into her own saddened eyes as he replied,

"I love you too, little one." As he was about to turn around and walk away again, he felt his best friend grasp onto his arm again and turn him around to face her.

Before he could say anything else, he felt her throw her trembling arms around his neck and hug him as tightly as she could. Choking back a sob of his own, he wrapped his arms around her waist tightly and gave her a tight squeeze before forcing himself to pull away from her. Taking a deep breath, the older angel looked one last time into his best friend's face and said,

"I guess I better get going now."

Sobs shook through her as she watched him go, almost tempted to change her mind about her decision. She knew she had hurt him, knew he wanted her with him right now, and deep down inside, she knew she should be there, just as he always was for her. What made it even harder was that such a large part of her wanted to be with him, was lost without him, but her grief ran so deep right now, that she just didn't see how she could possibly help him and as he was suffering as well, she didn't want him feeling like he needed to be constantly comforting her.

She only prayed that this hopefully brief separation would have no ill effects on their friendship as that was one loss she could never bear.

With a trembling hand, Angel knocked softly on the door to her parent's study and called through,

"Daddy?"

A few tense moments passed in silence before the teenager knocked again and spoke up a little louder this time,

"Dad, can I come in?" She put her hand on the doorknob and tested it, but found it to be locked tight. Waiting impatiently, the teenager stood outside the door until she heard the sound of the door unlocking and she watched as it opened slightly.

Pushing the door open, Angel walked in and saw her father sitting in the leather chair next to the window, his eyes turned away from her as if he was ignoring her presence. Trying to get him to talk once again, Angelica spoke up for a third time,

"Dad, are you all right?"

As if finally hearing her voice for the first time, Brady was pulled from his reverie as he looked over at the youngest of the three triplets. Her eyes were red and swollen from so many tears and there was an apprehensive look on her face. He was struck for a moment by the fact that she looked right now as if she were 8 years old again; unsure and afraid, and he had to remind himself that not only was she not 8, she was also pregnant.

Managing a sad smile, he motioned for her to come closer and when she did, he caught her up in his strong arms, as he felt her give into sobs against his chest,

"I know, sweetheart, I know," He whispered, his hand running through her blond hair gently.

"Daddy…I'm going to miss him so much….Paddy….why…." Angelica shook her head as she buried her face deeper against her father's chest.

"I wish I had answers for you, baby," He replied wearily, holding her tightly,

"We're all going to miss him, Angel."

"Everything is changing..." The teenager wept brokenly as she clung tightly to her father,

"N-nothing is the same anymore, daddy..."

"No...it isn't, baby girl," Brady replied wearily as he let out a deep sigh, not sure what else he could say to comfort his youngest daughter when he himself was such a mess at the moment. He had taken all of his anger and frustrations out on his wife for the last few hours when all she wanted was for their angelic friends to come back to them; and on top of it, he knew that Cindy wasn't sure of how he could react the way he did when their only son had just recently committed suicide,

"Just go ahead and let it out, sweetheart. Daddy's got you."

Slumping onto Brady's lap, her trembling arms still wrapped tightly around him, Angel sobbed brokenly like she was a little girl again even as her father whispered reassuring words to her; but even as she wept, the teenager didn't miss the tears in his own voice.

"I love you, baby," Brady uttered, grateful for the fact that she had come to him and had not questioned his decision on the angels right now. His emotions felt too raw to even think about them right now and right now, he decided, despite all the other turbulence in his life, his only concern for the moment was Angelica.

He held her for a long time, before he realized she had cried herself to sleep. As gently as he could, he stood up, still cradling her in his arms and walked down the hall to her bedroom. As he laid her down and pulled the covers up snugly around her, he leaned down and kissed her forehead gently,

"I love you, kitten," He whispered to her, before he turned off the light and left her room, leaving the door open a crack in the event she would need him.

As he headed back to his study, Brady looked over at the door to Patrick's room, which was closed, and his grieving heart wondered how long it would be before he would have the courage to open the door and see where his only son had once resided.

Later that evening, Andrew stepped through the doors of the cabin and immediately felt the quietness around him. Usually when the older angel came here, he felt a comfort and a sense of peace, but now that he wasn't here with his best friend or Kevin, or any of their friends, he felt nothing except lonely. The drive to the cabin had been the longest he could remember, with no chatter coming from his two charges as they both were off on their own right now just like he was.

Still wearing his jacket, Andrew shut the door tightly behind him and just looked around the cozy living room; the Father already had a fire burning in the fireplace for him, and he immediately felt the warmth of the cabin. But despite all that, he didn't find any comfort in it, as his best friend wasn't here to share it with him. His heart aching tremendously, Andrew sat down on the living room couch and lowered his head, finally allowing the tears to escape them.

He had tried to understand why Monica had wanted this time off by herself, and he didn't want her to see how hurt he really was when she gave him the news, but he didn't understand it at all. Not one bit. They needed each other right now; all three of them, and instead, they were off on their own, except for Kevin who was most likely with Carla right now.

His mind slowly went over the events of the last several weeks, from the very beginning to today. He almost smiled when he remembered how light hearted they had all been when they had first arrived at the Sullivan's, not sure at all as to why they were there. They had just come off six months of difficult cases that had hardly given them time to breath and they had been looking forward to the change of pace. His best friend had been particularly content that first evening and he had not seen her that way in quite some time or since then, now that he thought about it.

But then everything had picked up speed; Monica's nightmares had started, and they had found out what happened to Angel, Paddy threatening Keyser, and then the hostage situation with the fire. Andrew still shuddered at the memory of it, the pain and the fear he had felt, but tears came to his eyes once more when he thought about the loyalty of his best friend, as she had been there almost every moment. He had been in excruciating pain for three weeks, but for those three weeks, Monica had watched him suffer with the pain. Did she blame herself for confronting George Keyser?

He knew he was trying to pick apart every little piece of this for answers to her sudden need to be alone, because he knew her well and this was not like her. She would always seek him out when her heart was heavy and they often hurt over the same things, because what hurt one, hurt the other, especially since they often seemed to share one heartbeat. Many things had rattled them both over the last few days; Thorn and his abuse, his own arrest and her being turned over to the gang members. Was she right? Had it all just been too much this time; more than they could deal with together? But he so wanted her here.

Rising to his feet, his legs shaking slightly, Andrew made his way over to the fireplace mantel and gazed at the few pictures sitting on top of it. The first few were of him and his two charges at Disney World a couple of years ago, and the angel was unable to hold back a chuckle any longer as he saw a photo that Kevin took of him in the Mickey Mouse ears, with Monica standing right behind him, her hands on his shoulders and her tongue sticking out. On her auburn head, she wore a pair of Minnie Mouse ears.

The tears stinging his pained green eyes, Andrew looked at the rest of the framed photos and he saw that the rest of them were mainly of the entire group: Him, Monica, Kevin, Tess, Rose and Carla. One of them showed all of them standing in front of the Christmas tree a few years ago, all of them wearing bright smiles and Santa hats. Andrew's arm was wrapped tightly around his best friend's shoulders as she leaned pleasantly into him with a bright smile on her face, while with the other, he held Kevin in a gentle headlock.

Not really sure if he could look at them any longer, the angel turned away from the pictures as he wiped at his eyes; as he was about to turn around again, his eyes grew wide as he saw Tess standing right behind him, watching him the entire time. His shocked expression quickly became one of relief and even sadness as he saw his older friend and supervisor standing there,

"Tess...I didn't know you were here..."

"Rumor has it, you don't really want to be alone right now, baby," Tess remarked with a knowingly look in her dark eyes.

Andrew managed a tearful smile as he sat down on the couch and waited for Tess to join him,  
"No," He replied softly, his green eyes holding sorrow over so many things,  
"I thought I'd be getting through this the way same way I usually do…by the Father's perfect grace and…"

"And the help of your Angel Girl," Tess finished for him, reaching for his hand and giving it a squeeze,  
"All three of you are going through this in your own way right now, honey, and are trying to work out your own issues with the last two months. Kevin is with Carla right now and that isn't a bad thing. There's a little angelic friendship growing there…"

"Well, let's hope it does better than some others are right now," He remarked sadly.

"Angel Boy, you know that none of this is any reflection on your friendship with Monica. I think she just knows that you need to talk about what happened, and right now, she wants to do anything but that. What Patrick did has left you all in a state of shock, and you're all just handling it differently."

"It was horrible, Tess," Andrew whispered, at the mention of Patrick, his mind was now traveling back to those few moments that seemed to last forever,  
"One minute he was waving that knife at Monica and I and the next minute…." Unable to say the words, he continued softly,  
"I felt like I couldn't breath…like there was no way it had just happened and I couldn't figure out how it had all gone so wrong…Monica couldn't stop screaming…Kevin, he didn't know what to do…none of us did…"

Sympathy flooded Tess' eyes as she listened to her 'Angel Boy's' words, but she didn't say anything as she knew that her friend needed to get this out. Instead, she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and urged him to continue.

"It just seemed like a whole nightmare, and that...and that before we knew it, we would all wake up and Patrick would be with Brady and Cindy, safe and sound in his own bedroom. But it wasn't...it was real, Tess, and I didn't know what to say to comfort anyone, much less myself..." The younger angel continued sadly, tears stinging his green eyes.

"But he's Home with the Father now, baby boy," Tess soothed as she released his hand and ran her fingers through his blonde hair soothingly,

"And nobody can hurt Paddy again."

"But as a supervisor, Tess, should I have known what to say to make Kevin and Monica feel better?" He uttered, still trying to understand the actions of his two charges right now.

"Andrew," Tess began with a shake of her head,

"What could you have possibly said that would have made them or you feel any better about what had just happened? Sometimes baby, even as supervisors, we need to accept that there are not words of wisdom for every situation. Some things are just terrible, Angel Boy, and no words are going to make it any better for anyone."

"I suppose you're right," He replied heavily, getting up to walk over to the other side of the room, unable to shake the heaviness in his heart,

"I guess I just didn't expect things to end up…like this."

"Nobody expected it to end like this, sweetheart," Tess shook her head sadly as she also rose to her feet and made her way over to her friend, laying gentle hands on his shoulders,

"You hear me, Andrew? Nobody. And nobody could've stopped that boy's actions; he had free will and he used it in a horrible way, but it is in no way anybody's fault. You did the best you could do, baby..."

"Then why does it hurt so much, Tess?" Andrew uttered, his voice thick with emotion,

"Our entire lives have changed in 2 short months, and they may never be the same again..."

"No, they may not," The oldest angel agreed as she gently turned him around so that she could look into his tear-streaked face,

"But the Father does promise, honey, that He will take all of this tragedy and turn it into something good."

"I just wish I knew how…Brady wants us out of their lives, that family has been through so much, Kevin seems to be avoiding me, and my best friend is bottling this up, which she usually does when she doesn't want to deal with it…" He ran a hand tiredly through his hair,

"It's just one huge mess."

"But it will get better, baby, if you just give them all some time; Brady, Kevin and your Angel Girl too. She's going to come to you eventually; you know that in your heart…" Tess reminded him gently.

"I thought I did, Tess. I also thought she'd be here if I needed her," He replied sadly.

Tears filling her eyes at the younger angel's words, Tess lowered her head as she wasn't sure what she could say now to comfort him. He really seemed to have his mind made up about Monica's actions; but Tess took a deep breath and prayed silently for the correct words to say to her friend,

"And she will, baby. But until then, I'm here for you, and so is Rose. You've got to trust me, Andrew, your Angel Girl will come to you..."

Noticing that he didn't say a word to her, Tess watched as he turned his green eyes away but she didn't miss the tears now streaming from beneath them. Her heart aching for all of her friends, human and angelic, the older supervisor reached out and gathered him close to her for a few moments; but she could tell from the stiffness in his body that he didn't believe a word she said.

_Written by: CI and KP_

Philip watched from a distance for several minutes as the Irish angel walked aimlessly through the grass, the warm breeze blowing her shoulder length auburn hair away from her face to reveal an expression of complete heartache.

The newest angel knew she wanted to be left alone and he knew she had declined going to the cabin with Andrew yesterday, but he wasn't sure that either decision was a good idea. He approached her slowly, seeing she was deep in though and not wanting to startle her,

"Do you mind if I walk with you for a bit, little angel?" He asked softly as he fell in step beside of her.

Her eyes flickering recognition, she slowly shook her head, though she didn't look up,

"No, I don't mind."

"I could be wrong, but I get the impression that you don't really want to be alone as much as you think you do," He offered softly.

Monica shrugged her shoulders as she lowered her head to the ground, the tears slowly making their way down her face,

"I really don't know, Philip..."

"Monica, if I know you at all, and I do...I KNOW that you don't want to be alone," Philip gently pushed, walking slowly beside her as his eyes remained on her,

"I know that you really want to be with Andrew right now; the Father told me..."

Her shoulders slumping at the name of her best friend, the little Irish angel folded her arms across her chest and whispered dejectedly,

"Of course I want to be with him, but..."

"But?" Philip laid a gentle hand on her shoulder and waited until she finally looked up at him for the first time,

"Little angel, you can talk to me. But what?"

"It's hard to explain," Monica whispered, another tear slipping down her cheek,

"Its all just been too much, Philip…all of it. From what happened to Angel to what happened to Andrew to that man taking Angel and I hostage, to everything that happened on the streets with Thorn and Kevin and Hotrod and Paddy…I can't deal with it all; I don't even feel like my mind can comprehend it all and I keep trying to…and the things Brady said yesterday in the car-."

"Whoa, back up a step, sweetness," Philip interrupted gently,

"No one was to go near the Sullivan's right now…"

"Well, I did, but they didn't know I was there…" Choking on a sob, she tried to continue,

"He said terrible things, Philip, mostly about Andrew and I…I'm not even sure I ever want to go back down to earth again…it's all so hurtful and violent, for humans and for angels and with all this going on in my mind, how can I possibly be of any help to Andrew right now?"

"You can help him just by being there with him right now, sweetness," Philip gently replied, his hand still on her trembling shoulder,

"He needs you just as much as you need him-"

"But I don't want him feeling like he needs to comfort me, when he's hurting just as much, Philip," Monica interrupted through her sobs,

"Don't you see? He doesn't need that right now...and I just-I just can't go back on Earth. Not now...I'm not about to run into the Sullivan's; I've made the decision that I'm going to abide by their wishes and stay out of their existence forever..."

"Monica, I don't think they'll want you out of their existence forever," The other angel shook his head as he looked into her eyes, concern filling his heart for all involved in this mess,

"And if you just go be with Andrew right now, maybe you'll be surprised that you two CAN help each other through this. You've always been able to in the past..."

"But what if we can't this time?" She whispered brokenly,

"And I don't want to dump all of this on him; I don't want to burden him in that way…"

"And you know that anything that is in your heart, whether it be good or bad, he wants to know about. You have never been a burden to him, anymore than he has been to you and you know that's the truth," Philip told her softly, seeing the indecision in her eyes,

"Yes, you hurt him yesterday, but he has never stopped wishing you were there with him now and the cabin is of God, little angel, and you are not going to run into the Sullivan's there," Taking his hand off her shoulder, he continued,

"So why don't you let me take you to your Andrew, as we both know that is where you want to be? Go and make this right and then help each other through all of this," Watching her face, he extended his hand to her, waiting to see if she would take it.

Andrew had been unable to sleep the night before after Tess had left the cabin, and now the angel lay on his back on his bed, his green eyes staring tiredly up at the ceiling, taking in every little detail of it. Despite how early it was in the morning, and how tired he was, Andrew still couldn't seem to sleep. Each time he closed his eyes, memories flashed in his mind of the last few months and he was forced to open his eyes again and stay awake...plus, he didn't want to miss Monica in case she decided to come here. But so far, that had not happened.

Rolling over onto his side, Andrew hugged the pillow to his chest as his eyes turned towards Monica's bed that was next to his, the bed that had been moved to his room all those years ago when his best friend was frightened from reoccuring nightmares. For a brief moment, he closed his weary eyes and imagined her there with him right now, hearing her gentle laugh and her beautiful Irish voice. Sighing softly, Andrew opened his eyes again and unable to look at the bed any longer, he turned over onto his back once more and continued examining the ceiling as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.

He was so focussed on his thoughts that he didn't even heard the quiet sound of the front door opening from downstairs and soft footsteps coming up the stairs. The angel didn't even look up as the bedroom door opened with a creak and Monica's head poked in, her brown eyes red-rimmed from crying, and a heart-broken look on her pretty face.

"Monica…" He uttered as he sat up, both surprised and a little guarded at seeing her here so soon, but at the same time, she looked as much of a mess as he felt.

Trying her best to meet his eyes, despite the shame she was feeling about hurting him, she spoke up, her voice trembling,  
"I hurt you…and I'm sorry. Hurting you is something I never want to do…and I feel horrible…" Her words caught on a sob as she tried to continue,  
"I thought…I thought maybe it would be better if you had some time to deal with things without me because….I didn't want to burden you because you were hurting too…but then I made things worse…"

Crying openly now and not even able to see the tears and compassion in his eyes, she looked away, the look on her face one of complete despair,  
"I…I'm a mess, Andy and I don't even know how to begin to deal with any of this…but…but I know I can't do it without you…"

As she broke down completely, Andrew felt the tears falling from his own eyes, as he sat up enough to grasp her hand and guide her into his arms, where he cradled her tightly against his chest,  
"And I don't want to do any of it without you either…" He whispered hoarsely to her as her sobs shook through them both.

"I'm sorry….I'm so sorry…" She choked out the words over and over again as she felt his love enfold her, her heart breaking once more for ever having hurt him at all with her own stubbornness.

Andrew nodded his head numbly as he held her as tightly as his arms would allow,,

"I know..." He weakly responded, closing his eyes as he rested his chin on the top of her head.

"Why did this have to happen at all..." The Irish angel sobbed against her best friend's chest as her hands clung tightly to him as well,

"Oh Andy, why...?"

"I don't know, Mon'; I really don't know..." Andrew shook his head in reply as he let out a shaky sigh,

"I'm trying to figure all that out myself, really."

Feeling the heavy grief inside of her best friend as well, Monica buried her face into his shoulder blade and only held onto him tighter,

"I wish I wasn't...so s-stubborn; I'm so sorry I let you c-come here by yourself yesterday...I really am..."

His arms still wrapped around her shuddering frame, Andrew whispered hoarsely into her hair,

"I know you're sorry, Angel Girl; but I'm so thankful that you're here now...I couldn't have gone through this without you; you're my dearest friend and we both need each other..."

"I need you so much…" She whispered shakily, never lifting her head,

"I don't…feel like we've been able to…to deal with any one thing through all of this..b-before something else was happening. I mean…even when you were in the hospital, and we were…trying to deal with all that…Angel wanted an abortion and Kevin…wouldn't see you and P-paddy….he wouldn't see Amy…it was never one thing…I feel like we somehow lost control…"

"I know. I know," He uttered through tears, wishing he could think of one positive thing to say to help them both,

"I would like to believe though, that Brady is going to change his mind about us being out of their lives, Angel Girl. Maybe once the shock has worn off, he'll realize the truth and-." He stopped as he saw his best friend shaking her head adamantly.

"No…I'm done," Monica stated tearfully,

"I don't care what he decides…I'm done. I'm not going back there…"

Finding it in himself to pull slowly away from his best friend, Andrew held her by the shoulders as he looked through blurred vision into her sorrowful brown eyes,

"Mon', you can't mean that-"

"I can and I do," Monica nodded her head as she wiped at the never-ending tears in her eyes,

"I heard what Brady said about us in the car yesterday, and I made my decision then and there, Andrew-"

Frowning, Andrew held up his hand to silence her gently and after she fell quiet, the older angel asked, his voice still heavy with emotion,

"You went to see them? Monica...we were told not to..."

"I know, Andy, but I couldn't help it," The Irish angel sobbed as she looked into her best friend's shocked face,

"Not long after we came back home, I was in the car when Brady and Cindy were driving home from the hospital and they were fighting...and Brady was saying the most terrible things about us both that I will never forget, and even if he may change his mind, I'm not going to see them again. I'm leaving their existence for good since that's what he wants."

"Angel Girl, you know that Brady is only reacting out of anger-." Andrew began tearfully, wanting to change her mind on this as if he couldn't, the loss would be terrible, for both she and the Sullivan's.

"And every time he gets angry, he orders one or more of us out of his house!" She snapped through her tears, not angry with Andrew, but just angry with everything at the moment,

"Well, from here on out, he gets his wish."

Drawing in a deep breath, Andrew knew that there would be no reasoning with her at the moment; they had both been through too much and were too emotionally drained and the last thing he wanted to do was spark a fight with her right now when they were both vulnerable,

"We don't have to talk about this now. We'll have plenty of time later when we are both feeling more up to it." He offered wearily.

Instantly regretting her tone with him, Monica drew in a trembling breath and reached her trembling hands out to his,

"I-I'm sorry I snapped at you, Andy...I'm sorry about alot of things lately..."

Andrew lowered his eyes to the bed and nodded his head miserably,

"It's okay...we're both a mess right now, and one of us is going to have to snap one of these days, you know?"

"But I don't want you to think I'm angry at you..." The little Irish angel uttered weakly, the tears once more coming to her eyes,

"I-I'm just so angry about everything that's happened...and I just want it to be over with; I almost want the three of us to be back at Disney World where there were no worries, and nobody was angry and hurt..." Her voice broke on a sob,

"I miss those days were things weren't completely out of control..."

"So do I, little one," He whispered to her, wrapping her in his arms once more, as he tried to think clearly,

"I propose that before we do anymore talking, we both try to get a little rest. I didn't sleep all night last night, and you look wiped out as well."

"Can I stay here with you?" She whimpered softly, sobs still causing her to tremble.

"Of course you can," He whispered tearfully to her, realizing that she had not been away from his side at night since before the fire.

As he laid back down once again on the bed, Andrew reached an arm out and waited until she had curled underneath his arm and wrapped an arm around his waist with her head resting against his chest. Her sobs starting to quiet, Monica whispered weakly,

"I love you. I just love you so much..." Almost immediately after she said those words, she felt her eyelids growing heavy and she fell into an exhausted sleep.

By mid-afternoon, Wendy was sure that if she didn't get away from both of her parents, she was going to scream. Despite what her mother had told her 2 days ago after they had arrived back from the hospital after ID-ing Paddy's body, the teenager heard both of her parents arguing downstairs again and their loud voices were drifting up to the second floor quickly.

Cringing and her heart filling with intense anger towards them, Wendy leapt off of her bed and was about to head downstairs when Angel walked in, her voice tear-streaked and her lower lip quivering,

"Wen, they're at it again..."

"I know," The slightly older twin mumbled, narrowing her blue eyes towards the door,

"And that's why I'm going down there right now before I go crazy." Gently brushing past her sister, the teenager marched down the hall and towards the staircase.

Brady and Cindy were in the middle of a heated argument when the sound of their daughter's voice stopped them as they turned their heads to face her.

"Stop it!" Wendy all but screamed, her entire body shaking with grief and rage,

"Don't you two ever quit? Do you even consider for one lousy minute that there are two other people living in this house who actually know how to grieve without screaming at each other? This is the time we should be a family, but you two are so selfish, that you can't see that!"

"Wendy, please-." Cindy began, but her furious daughter cut her off.

"No, mom! I'm sick of this! You've both got Angel in tears! It's bad enough we just lost our brother, but now we have to listen to the two of you attacking each other constantly. Maybe Paddy was the smart one! He got out while he could; before it all fell apart!"

"Wendy Sullivan, how dare you even say that!" Brady shouted, but his daughter cut him off before he could continue.

"How dare I?!" The teenager snapped back, glaring at both of her parents,

"How dare YOU! I would much rather do what Paddy did then live with you two for one more minute! You're not even thinking about us right now, you're just thinking about your own selves, and your bickering! Well, I for one am not going to put up with any longer; I'm calling Amy and staying at her house for a few nights!" She turned on her heel and started to march upstairs, but her father reached out and grabbed her arm before she could go any further.

"Now look here, young lady," Brady snapped, his eyes narrowed in anger,

"You're not just going to head over there without our permission-"

"Watch me, dad!" Wendy pulled her arm away from his grasp,

"I'd rather be anywhere then with you, and that's what I'm going to do!"

As she stormed up the steps, she was totally unprepared to see Angel standing in the hallway, tears streaking her cheeks,

"Angel…"

"Please don't leave me, Wendy," She pleaded through her tears,

"Please…"

"Angel, if I don't get out of here for awhile, I'm going to explode," Wendy tried to explain, her sister's tears tearing at her heart,

"Come with me, okay?"

But Angel shook her head,

"No, I can't…I'm starting to show and I don't want anyone to know about the baby and I can't leave mom and dad here to kill each other…" Wiping at her eyes, she begged once more,

"Please stay with me…"

Wishing more then anything that Angelica would agree to come with her, but also knowing that her sister was more stubborn then she was, Wendy shook her head miserably as she weakly whispered,

"I can't, Angel-"

Choking on a sob, Angel covered her mouth with her hand as she mumbled,

"You're coming back, though...right?"

Wendy wrapped her twin sister up in a tight, long hug before she nodded her head, shame already filling her for leaving Angel alone with their parents while they went at each other's throats,

"Of course I'll come back. In a few days you'll see me again; I just need to get away from them for a few days. It's not like I want to leave you, Angel..."

Tightly clutching her sister, not wanting to let her go, Angel realized that she didn't really have much a choice then as she miserably nodded. Finally feeling Wendy pull away, Angel let her go and whispered through her tears,

"I love you, Wen..."

"I love you too, Angel," Her sister replied as she wiped at the tears on her own cheeks. Attempting a weak smile, Wendy gave her sister's shoulder a tender squeeze before she brushed past her to go into their parent's study to call Amy.

_Written by: CI and KP_

"You've been sitting out here forever," Carla remarked softly as she walked down on the sand and sat down beside of Kevin,

"If I'm going to help you at all, Kev, you have to start opening up about what you are thinking about."

"You know what I'm thinking about, Carla," Kevin remarked with a heavy sigh,

"I'm thinking about what a big jerk I am and how I treat my friends like second class citizens. There I was taking up for Thorn and the whole time, he was trying to figure out how to hurt Andrew and Monica."

"But there was no way you could have known that, Kevin," Carla replied softly,

"Had you known, you would have stayed with them."

"But the first rule Andrew set was that we stay together and we all agreed," Kevin stated firmly,

"It took me less than 24 hours to break the one rule that was established and it could have cost them everything."

"Kevin, you were human those last few days," Carla pointed out gently,

"You were a child for Heaven's sake, and children are stubborn. The Father made you that way, Kev, and you thought that Thorn was a nice, cool guy."

"But he wasn't," Kevin glanced in her direction before turning back to the ocean in front of them,

"He turned out to be anything but..."

"And you knew that before things got even worse, Kevin," The slightly older angel continued, her green eyes boring into his,

"Andrew forgave you for those things, and so has Monica. They love you, Kev, and nothing will change that-"

"But I let Andrew down once again, too, Carla," Kevin interrupted, lowering his head in shame,

"And although he's forgiven me, I can't forgive myself for that. What I did the first time was completely unforgiveable, and I decided to take advantage of his forgiveness and test it again. I'm an idiot, Carla; not even you can deny that..."

"Kevin, we all make mistakes; some of them terrible mistakes," Seeing his same stubborn expression, she decided to use the two angels he was so upset over as her example,

"You know, Andrew must have walked away from Monica at least 4 times, when she needed him. Each time he came back, he was sorry and she forgave him, because she loves him and he came back because he loves her. But every time it happened, the trust had to be re-established to a degree and then it would happen all over again. Now I don't know if Andrew was intentionally taking advantage of the fact that he knew she would forgive him, nor do I think you did it intentionally either. But it's the same thing, Kevin."

"How so?" He uttered weakly though he did see the similarities.

"Friendship is delicate, Kevin and has be treated as such, but it takes time to learn that. It took Andrew and Monica years to learn it and to have what they have now. It didn't happen overnight and dozens of mistakes were made along the way, some of them downright painful mistakes, which caused one of them to suffer, but they learned from them and so will you."

"I take it you're telling me that you want for me to go to them," Kevin whispered, turning his dark eyes away from his friend. His heart leapt into his throat at the thought of facing both of his friends again,

"Right?"

"Kevin, you have free will just like anyone else," Carla pointed out again, sighing heavily,

"You can do what you want; I just want to point you in the right direction, my friend, that's all. It won't do you any good if you just continue sitting here, feeling guilty; you're going to need to talk to them sooner or later..."

"But how do I start?" Kevin weakly asked, feeling tears welling up in his eyes all over again.

"Just take it one step at a time, Kev," The little blonde angel smiled slightly in his direction,

"Just one step at a time..."

Kevin stood in the doorway of Andrew's room, his blurred vision upon the two sleeping angels. He had to smile when he realized Monica had come here as well, as he had heard she had wanted to be alone and now, one by one, like an estranged family, they were returning home to try to work through the pain of the past few weeks.

"I really love you guys," He whispered softly.

Hearing a voice, Andrew slowly opened his eyes and with the hand that was not wrapped around his best friend, he rubbed his eyes wearily and looked over at the door,

"Kev?" He asked softly, just as Monica began to stir in his arms.

Nodding his head weakly, the youngest angel closed the door softly with a click as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and made his way across the room,

"Hi, Andrew."

Hearing Kevin's voice in the back of her head as well, Monica slowly stretched out and rubbed at her dark eyes before she slowly lifted her head off of Andrew's chest and looked tiredly over at Kevin. Her eyes grew wide as she saw him standing there, his face tear-streaked and the mask of pain was identical to the ones on both her and Andrew's faces as well,

"Kev...I thought you were with Carla..."

Lowering his head sadly, the youngest Caseworker made his way over to the bed and took a seat on Andrew's other side, his eyes looking down at his sweaty hands,

"I was...but she and I had a long talk, and I finally realized I needed to come here and talk to you both, you know?"

"What's going on, Kevin?" Andrew asked gently, getting the feeling that though Kevin was suffering with the pain of all that had happened, this was something different.

Still not looking up, Kevin began quietly,

"I know you've both forgiven me, at least, I think you have, but the truth is, I haven't forgiven myself for leaving you guys when you left the train yard that day…It was wrong of me and you two suffered for it. Had I been there, things might have happened differently…"

"Kevin-." Monica began softly but he stopped her gently.

"There's more to it than that, I'm afraid. Patrick…maybe things wouldn't have happened as they did if I had set a better example for him after the fire. He avoided Amy, the same way I avoided you, Andrew and Paddy lashed out at everyone in anger, the same way I did with you and Tess, Monica…." His voice trailed off as tears threatened his eyes,

"I didn't think about it at the time, but that's the truth. He saw an angel acting like a dumb jerk, so why wasn't it okay for a human 14 year old kid to act the same way?"

Andrew's heart ached as he saw the tears filling his youngest charge's eyes, but he remained silent as Kevin continued slowly.

"I don't really know what I can do to make it up to you both," He whispered weakly, the tears trailing down his face,

"But I'm going to try and change...I promise. I just love you guys so much, and I hate what I've done. God forgive me, I hate myself for what I put you two through..."

His heart now breaking, Andrew glanced over at his best friend before turning back to Kevin and reaching his arms out to him. As the older angel hugged his youngest charge tightly, Andrew finally found his voice, even though it was quiet,

"Kevin, when we said that we forgave you, we meant it, Wonder Boy...and we love you like crazy, kid. Nothing will ever change that."

"That's what Carla said," Kevin replied with a heavy sigh as he hugged Andrew tightly.

"Carla's smart, and she was right," Andrew continued, feeling his own eyes tearing up again,

"Kev, we all make mistakes...Monica and I have had more then our share, and so will you. Just because you made these kinds of errors doesn't mean that we hate you, because it will never happen. As for Paddy...you were going through a difficult time as well, you know? You couldn't have known what would have happened in the coming weeks...you couldn't have known that he would have run away and taken to the streets."

"But I still should have handled it better…" Kevin wept softly,  
"You are my friend and that should have been all that mattered and for that, I am so sorry."

"It's all forgiven, Kev," Andrew uttered softly, giving his charge one more tight squeeze before releasing him,  
"I don't want you beating yourself up over it any more, okay? It's over."

Nodding his head tearfully, Kevin then looked over at Monica, surprised to see tears streaking her cheeks,  
"Monica, when I heard that Andrew had been arrested and you have been turned over to gang members…I felt positively sick inside. I had treated this all like some game and you were so afraid and I understand why now…had I stayed with you, I wouldn't of let anyone hurt you…I don't know if I could have stopped Andrew being arrested, but…at the very least…you would have been safe had I not been such an idiot…"

Not knowing what to say, but deeply touched by his words, the Irish angel reached and hugged her younger friend tightly as she found herself sobbing once more.

Tears fell from his own eyes, as Andrew watched his two charges cling tightly to one another, both of them in tears,  
"Oh Father," He thought to himself,  
"Your angels are hurting so much and so deeply…help me to help them and help us to help each other, please, Father…the pain is so raw right now…give us soon the gift of your peace…"

Reaching out, he pulled his two younger charges up against him, as if they were still both those small children of a few days ago,  
"We're going to get through this, you two," He whispered shakily, holding them both tightly,  
"You both believe that," He squeezed Kevin's shoulder reassuringly as he kissed the top of Monica's head,  
"I love you both so much and whatever it takes, we will get through this, okay?"

Nodding his head against his friend, Kevin clung tightly to both Andrew and Monica as he whispered weakly,

"Okay..."

Several hours later after Wendy had left for Amy's house to stay with her and her parents for the next few days, Angelica sat alone on her bed, her knees drawn up to her chest and the tears continuing to stream from her baby blue eyes. Although she knew that she shouldn't be feeling anger towards her parents like her sister was, as the night before she had felt the grief deep inside of her father, the teenager could no longer push that anger aside and she felt it churning within her.

But as she suddenly felt her mother take a seat on the bed next to her, Angel forced that anger aside for the time being, as she wasn't about to snap like Wendy had done. Lifting her head silently, the teenager just stared at Cindy for a few moments before her mother spoke up weakly.

"I'm sorry about earlier, baby. I'm sorry you and Wendy had to hear all of that..."

"But is dad sorry?" Angel asked quietly, turning her blue eyes away from her mother.

Cindy sighed softly, her heart aching for her daughter as well as the rest of her family,  
"Sweetheart, daddy is having a lot of trouble dealing with things right now and we all react differently. Your dad right now is reacting with anger and that is a normal emotion for what has happened."

"Why do you take up for him when he acts this way, mom?" Angel whispered, feeling tears burning in her eyes.

"Because I love him, Angel," Cindy replied softly,  
"Even if I don't like him so much right now, I still love him."

Angel nodded her head as she fell silent once more. She had spent the day feeling incredibly lonely since Wendy had left her and she was trying very hard not to be angry with her sister,  
"Mom…I really miss the angels…I miss Monica…"

Cindy smiled as she drew her daughter into her arms,  
"She always was your favorite, the same way Andrew was Wendy's and Kevin was Paddy's…even though all three of you love them all, you each seemed to pick one from the time you were little. I miss them too, baby and I so wish they were here."

"Won't daddy at least let them come to the service?" Angel pleaded hopefully,  
"They tried so hard to help Paddy and they must be heartbroken over not being able to…"

"Honey, I can't ask that of your dad right now and I don't want to make Friday any more stressful than it needs to be…" Cindy tried to explain.

"What if I ask him?" Angel offered weakly,  
"They can sit in the back…daddy can pretend they aren't even there. I just really want to see them…"

Cindy let out a weary sigh,  
"You've always had a way with your dad, Angel, so if you want to ask him, that is your decision. Just be prepared for 'no' and please, don't get angry with him if that is what his answer is. You're the only one he seems to allowing to touch his heart the last few days, and I don't want that taken from him."

Angel's face held stubborn conviction to get through to her father as she nodded her head weakly,

"I'm going to talk to him right now..." Pulling away from her mother, the teenager rose to her feet and headed towards the doorway. She glanced in his study, and upon not seeing him there, Angelica headed towards the staircase and moments later, she found her father standing with his back facing to her in the living room. His eyes were focused on the framed pictures on the mantel above the fireplace, and right now, it appeared he was looking at a picture of Patrick.

The teenager cleared her throat as she still stood in the doorway, and finally spoke up,

"Dad, can I talk to you for a few minutes?"

Turning around, his hands behind his back, Brady's face held many different emotions as he responded coolly,

"What about?"

Suddenly feeling unsure as she realized her dad had been caught up in memories of Paddy, she lowered her head for a moment, trying to find the right words.

Seeing his daughter's obvious distress, Brady spoke once more, his voice kinder,

"What is it, kitten? You know you can talk to me about anything," Sitting down on the couch, he beckoned to her to join him.

Sitting down beside of him, Angel tried to find her voice,

"Daddy, I know how upset you are right now, and that your upset with the angels too, but…couldn't they at least come to Paddy's service? Please, daddy? They loved him too and Paddy loved them…"

Brady sighed heavily, knowing if it had been Cindy asking this question, he would be blowing up right about now, but this was his youngest daughter, who already had so much on her plate and he wasn't about to lash out at her,

"Angel, you have no idea what you are asking of me…"

"But I do, daddy," She whispered, looking up into his eyes, her own holding unconditional love for him,

"I don't know what happened out there on the streets anymore than you do or if the angels are to blame. But I do know that Paddy would want them there on Friday and if you decide they can't see us anymore, I'd at least like to be able to say good-bye." She lowered her blue eyes as she felt tears fill them.

Brady lowered his head and rubbed his forehead to try and hide the expression on his face. Truth be told, he didn't even want the angels there at Paddy's memorial service on Friday; he was so angry at them, and he felt like they didn't deserve to have his daughters say 'good-bye' to them. But as he raised his head and looked into Angel's saddened blue eyes which were flooded with hot tears, the human sighed heavily as he contemplated over all that she was asking,  
"Angel..."

"Please, dad?" She continued pleading, her eyes holding deep sorrow,

"Why can't we at least get a chance to say good-bye? They're still my friends, even if they aren't your's anymore." Her voice broke on a sob as she lowered her head to her hands.

Brady was silent for a few short moments before he nodded his head and reluctantly replied,

"All right then. But I'm only doing this for you and your sister, because I love you two like crazy..."

Not missing the fact that her father deliberately left her mom out, Angel nodded her head as she forced a trembling smile on her face,

"Thank you, daddy...thank you..."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Andrew felt beyond nervous as he hurriedly got ready Friday morning for Paddy's funeral. He had been in awe ever since the Father had told him they were permitted to go to the service, but had advised them to steer clear of Brady, unless the human approached them first. His stomach was in knots, which made it difficult to tie the knot in his tie, but he finally calmed himself down enough to do so.

The atmosphere at the cabin had not improved much thus far over the last two days and he was starting to feel like a black cloud was hanging above them, and he could only hope that today might be able to start the healing process for the three of them.

"Kev? You about ready?" He called, giving a knock on Kevin's door.

"I'll meet you downstairs in a minute, Simba," The youngest angel called back, his own voice showing traces of a bad case of nerves.

Nodding to himself, Andrew then approached Monica's door and knocked softly and hearing her reply that the door was open, he walked in and stopped short at seeing her still in her pajamas, curled up in the chair by the window,

"Angel Girl, we need to get a move on or we're going to be late…"

Not looking at him, she drew in a deep breath,

"You don't need to worry about being late as I'm not going. I meant what I said the other day, Andrew. I'm done."

His stomach churning once again, Andrew felt like he couldn't breathe for a few minutes as he stood rooted in the doorway. After a few minutes of silence, the older angel spoke up, his voice choked up,

"Do you at least want to say good-bye? The Father told me that Angel really wants to see you..."

The Irish angel lowered her head sadly as she drew in a shaky breath. Yes, she did really want to see Angelica one last time, and even Wendy; but she wasn't about to show her face in front of everyone else, not after she had already made her decision,

"I can't, Andrew...you and Kevin will have to go without me." She finally lifted her head and looked through blurred vision at her best friend,

"I'm sorry. Please, just tell Angel I'm sorry."

Andrew gulped as he slowly made his way into the room and stood next to her, laying a gentle hand on her head and stroking her tangled auburn hair,

"If you're absolutely sure, little one...I wish I could make you change your mind, but I know I can't right now..."

"I'm sure," Monica whispered, wanting him to just go before she started crying,

"Go on. I don't want you and Kevin to be late. Give the girls my love…"

Seeing the tears welling up in her tired brown eyes made it nearly impossible for him to leave her, but he knew he had to. He wished he knew what she had heard said in the car that day, but she had so far refused to tell him. Whatever it had been though, had been hurtful enough to keep her from Angelica when she knew the teenager wanted to see her.

Bending to kiss the top of her head, he sighed softly once more,

"I'll tell them. You know where we'll be if you change you mind…"

"I won't, but thank you," She replied tearfully. Waiting until he left the room, closing the door softly behind him, she then dissolved into quiet sobs over the loss of a family she had loved so much.

As Andrew made his way back down the stairs, he spotted Kevin sitting on one of the chairs in the living room, his head hanging and his dark eyes downcast. Sensing the presence of his supervisor, the youngest angel looked up and frowned slightly,

"Where's Cupcake?"

"She's not coming," Andrew replied, lifting a hand to wipe the moisture away from his green eyes, which held as much sorrow as Kevin's did,

"But I can't push her, though...she's really determined to stay away from the Sullivan's, even Angel." He ran an exhausted hand through his blonde hair and let out a heavy sigh.

Seeing the deep pain evident in his friend's eyes, Kevin drew in a deep breath and rose from his chair,

"Well, let's get this over with then..."

Andrew and Kevin slipped into seats in the back of the chapel beside of Tess and Rose, just minutes before the service was due to begin and Andrew felt Tess immediately reach for his hand.

"How are you holding up, babies?" She asked softly.

"As well as can be expected, I suppose," He replied shakily, looking up front at the closed casket and seeing the Sullivan's all sitting together in the front row.

"Honey, where is your Angel Girl?" Rose asked, her blue eyes showing concern.

"She's not coming," Andrew responded, deciding to leave it at that.

"What do you mean, she isn't coming?" Tess demanded in a whisper, her expression one of confusion,

"She was adamant about not staying out of their lives when I told her what Brady had said."

"Something else happened, Tess," Andrew replied wearily, his own concern for his best friend making him not want to discuss this right now,

"I don't even have all the details, but I wasn't about to force her…not after all we've been through." Relief filled him as the service then began to start, which caused Tess' interrogation to stop and Andrew turned tear-filled eyes to the minister, saying a silent prayer to the Father to just get him through the next 30 minutes.

The service seemed to last longer then 30 minutes, and every now and then he felt either Tess or Rose squeeze his hand, and Andrew occasionally stole a glance over at Kevin to see if he was handling this all right. With a deep breath, the angel turned back to the service and he let it out slowly as it was just coming to a close. After a few more words from the pastor, the four angels listened as the service ended and everyone rose quietly to their feet to head out of the church and to the graveyard where Patrick's body would be put to rest.

As Andrew rose shakily to his feet, he felt a pair of eyes on him and he turned around to see Wendy and Angelica staring at him and the rest of his friends. Glancing over to make sure that Brady wasn't watching them, the angel stood back as Wendy made her way quickly over to him, her eyes flooded with tears. With no words spoken from the teenager, she had all but flung her arms around him and clung to him like a lifeline,

"I'm so glad that you're here..." She buried her face into Andrew's jacket as she allowed more tears to come.

As he clung tightly to his human friend, Andrew gave a shaky sigh before looking over her shoulder at Angel, who was watching them silently, her own baby blue eyes filled with pain.

"I don't know if we're ever gonna see you again, Andrew…" Wendy sobbed brokenly,

"And my brothers gone and it's all a mess…"

"I know, sweetheart," He whispered, his own voice choked, as he saw Cindy slowly approaching them as well, while Brady remained at the front of the church at his son's casket,

"But your dad is upset right now and he may change his mind later, once this shock has worn off a little bit," Reaching his hand out to Angel, he felt her grasp it as he pulled her close as well.

"W..Where's Monica?" She whispered, her voice trembling.

Keeping one arm wrapped around Wendy, Andrew reached out to stroke Angel's hair,

"Honey, she couldn't make it, but she wanted me to tell you both how much she loves you…"

Burying her face in Andrew's shoulder, Angelica clung to him as she whispered brokenly,

"Why...why not?"

Closing his green eyes as he silently prayed for the right words to answer his human friend, Andrew drew in a shuddering breath before replying,

"Monica...she's just so upset over all that has happened, and by having to stay away from you all...that she feels like she can't show her face here. She's really sorry, sweetheart..."

"I-I wanted to say good-bye to all of you," Angel sobbed as she closed her tear-filled blue eyes,

"Tell her that...that I love her, and that I'll miss her...I'll miss all of you, Andrew..."

Andrew nodded his head sadly as his tears spilled down his cheeks,

"I will, Angel. I promise I will..."

Looking over the twin's heads, Andrew watched through blurred vision as Cindy made her way to him, her own face streaked with tears,

"Oh Andrew, I'm so glad you guys came..." She choked on a sob as she embraced the angel tightly,

"Thank you."

"We wanted to be here, Cin'," Andrew uttered, hugging her as tears streaked his cheeks,

"We're so sorry about Paddy. We did all we could, I promise you we did…."

"Andrew, I never doubted that for a minute," She replied through her tears,

"Patrick was stubborn…he always was…he…" Breaking down again, she nearly collapsed had Andrew not caught her,

"I can't…I can't lose anyone else, Andrew…I can't….and I'm going to lose you and Monica…I can't….I just can't….and I can't believe she didn't come today…."

Holding his breath for a moment, Andrew slowly let it out as he whispered into her shoulder,

"I-I'll talk to her again tonight..."

"But it may not do any good, Andrew," Cindy shook her head as she continued holding onto her angelic friend,

"Today may be the last time we'll ever see you all...and I'm going to miss you so, so much..."

Watching over his friend's shoulder as Wendy and Angelic exchanged final hugs with Kevin, Tess and Rose, Andrew gave Cindy a tight squeeze before replying,

"We're going to miss you too...but maybe it won't be forever; maybe Brady will come around..."

"I'll be praying," Cindy squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to release the angel just yet and head back to Brady,

"God, I'll be praying..."

"We will be too, sweetie," Andrew whispered as he squeezed her tightly once more, not wanting to keep Brady waiting much longer as he didn't want any more stress added to this day for this family.

Moving once more to the twins, he hugged them both tightly,

"I love you, guys. We all do and you both remember that okay?"

Both girls sobbing openly, they nodded their heads as Wendy spoke up shakily,

"Will we ever see you all again, Andrew?"

Closing his eyes, he replied the only way he knew how,

"If it's in God's plan, Wendy, then yes, you will."

"We have to, Andrew…" Angel burst out softly,

"We need you guys….mom and dad fight all the time now…about you and Monica…about Paddy…about everything….and…and there's no one there to tell Wendy and I it will all be okay…"

Forcing back his own sobs at those heart breaking words, Andrew hugged her to him,

"Talk to God, Angel, okay? That's what we've always taught you and He's always there and will always listen, even when angels can't…"

"Girls, we have to go," Cindy whispered, watching through tears as the twins pulled away from the angel, both crying uncontrollably, as her blue eyes met with Andrew's one last time,

"Pray." She whispered simply.

Andrew nodded his head,

"I will."

"Are you all right, Wendy?" Amy's mother asked several hours later as the Richards family and Wendy drove home from the gravesite after having laid Patrick's body to rest,

"You've been awfully quiet back there for some time, sweetheart..."

Shooting a glance next to her at Amy, who's head was facing the window of the car, Wendy lowered her own blonde head and shrugged her shoulders,

"I don't know, Mrs. Richards...I'm thinking about so much right now..."

"We saw you saying good-bye to some friends after the memorial service, Wendy," Mike Richards jumped in, looking sadly through the review mirror at the teenager and his own daughter,

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Her head still lowered, Wendy let out a shaky sigh as she avoided Mr. Richard's sympathetic look,

"I've just lost everything these last few months..."

"I know how hard this must be, honey," Anna Richards replied gently.

"My mom and dad are fighting all the time now," Wendy whispered miserably, trying to force back the tears,

"And the friends I was saying good-bye to? They are sort of counselors and were supposed to help Paddy, but because he killed himself, my dad blames them. I've known them my whole life and now dad doesn't want us to be friends with them anymore. My brother is dead and Angel…" Her voice trailed off, unsure of whether or not to tell Angel's secret.

"What about Angel, sweetheart?" Mark asked softly, seeing the tears brimming in Wendy's eyes.

Wendy gulped as she glanced over at Amy, and saw that her friend was now facing them, a look of pure agony on her scarred face from the fire. Feeling the teenager reach for her hand and give it a squeeze, Wendy drew in a shuddering breath and blurted out,

"Angel doesn't want you all to know...I wanted her to come with me when I called you guys the other day, but..."

"Honey, it's all right; you can tell us," Anna reassured, glancing over her shoulder at the teenager,

"If you would like to keep this between us, then that's what we'll do, okay?"

Giving her head a jerky puppet's nod, Wendy drew in a shaky breath before speaking up again,

"Angel's pregnant...she was-she was r-raped 2 months ago by her math teacher..."

Anna drew in a sharp breath as they pulled into the driveway,

"Oh Wendy…" She uttered softly as she heard the teenager dissolve into heart wrenching sobs in the backseat. Exchanging a look with her husband, Anna got out of the car and opened the back door, pulling Wendy into her arms as the girl completely broke down,

"It's okay, sweetheart. Let it out, honey."

"Let's get her inside," Mark said softly as he reached for his own daughter's hand, seeing the tears in her eyes, as Anna led Wendy into the house and over to the sofa where they sat down.

Anna's eyes held concern as she held onto the usually strong teenager as she cried uncontrollably as the minutes ticked by, seemingly no end to her grief. But Anna only let her cry out her pain, wondering if this was the first time she had really broken down since all of this had happened.

The minutes passed slowly as Anna continued to hold tightly to Wendy, and just as she thought the teenager was never going to stop sobbing, she felt the even breathing of the girl's chest and knew instantly that she had cried herself to sleep. Not wanting to disturb her, Anna just kept her arms wrapped tightly around her daughter's friend as they sat on the living room couch.

_Written by: CI and KP_

By the time Andrew and Kevin had arrived back at the cabin, the older of the two instantly realized that Monica had still not come out of her room and he feared that her grief was just continuing to grow by the second. Turning towards his youngest charge, Andrew laid a hand on his shoulder as he said weakly,

"I'm going to check on her..." As his friend nodded his head in reply, Andrew headed quietly up the stairs and towards her room.

As he knocked on the door and got no reply from Monica, Andrew opened it a crack and saw the room empty and dark. Realizing that she must be in his room, the angel closed the door behind him and walked the few steps towards his own room, opening it quietly and slowly. His best friend's name on his lips as he opened it up, he stopped short as he saw her fast asleep on his bed, her arms curled around his pillow and her pretty face streaked with tears.

Sitting down quietly on the edge of the bed, Andrew reached over and gently brushed the backs of his fingers over her cheek, watching as a tear escaped her closed eye. Knowing that she must be dreaming, probably reliving some horrible moment of the last two months, he leaned over and kissed the side of her head,

"Sweetheart?" He whispered softly, watching as she slowly opened her red-rimmed brown eyes to look up at him. Knowing he had to get her to open up to him, to tell him what had been said in the car that day, he continued running his fingers through her hair,

"How are you doing, baby?"

Her dark eyes immediately welling up with tears, she answered in a voice that was not quite as loud as a whisper,

"Not so good, Andrew," She admitted, feeling unable to even move due to the numbness that had settled over her. Trying to put what she was feeling into words, she just felt powerless to do so,

"I just….I just….hurt…"

"I know, Angel Girl," Andrew sighed tiredly as he closed his green eyes,

"We all do..." He opened them again after a moment and saw that she had also opened her eyes to finally look up at him.

"I...I'm sorry I didn't come...but I couldn't..." The Irish angel whispered, her brown eyes now locked on her best friend's,

"Did you tell...Angel...?"

Nodding sadly, Andrew choked back his own tears as he continued stroking her cheek with his fingertips,

"Yes. I did...they didn't quite understand, little one; and to be honest...I still don't..." Watching as she turned her eyes away from him, Andrew lowered his head as he forced the next words out,

"Baby...I have to know what Brady said in the car...I know it hurts, but I have to know so that we can at least start to heal from this."

"Why should you be hurt by his words as well, Andrew?" Monica whispered tearfully,

"It was one thing to hear Tess say he didn't want to see us, but…to hear someone I loved say those things….please, don't make me tell you…"

Hating to force her, but needing to know in order to understand, he replied gently,

"Sweetie, you have to get it out. You can't keep it inside of you like this. Don't worry about me, okay? If it hurts, I want to hurt with you…"

The tears already trailing down her pale face, she spoke up after a moment in a trembling whisper,

"Cindy…she tried to take up for us, but Brady…he said we brought trouble into the house all the time…he said we were supposed to help Paddy and not cause him to kill himself…" Her voice caught in a sob as she struggled to continue, only the feel of Andrew's gentle touch against her face giving her the courage to do so,

"Cindy tried to remind him of the good things we had done…like saving Wendy and Angel from the demons…and you giving yourself over to Keyser so that Brady and Angel could go free…Brady told her that had I not confronted him that day in his office…you never would have had to save them…he said that I was always getting into trouble and that…that the whole house stops when something was wrong with you…" Unable to continue, she broke down at the memory of the horribly painful words.

Andrew's heart broke at the words she spoke that Brady had said in the car that day, but he took a shuddering breath and grasped his best friend's hand so that he could pull her tightly into his arms

"Let it out, Monica..." He urged her weakly.

"I didn't want to hurt you with that," The Irish angel trembled in his arms as she clung to him just as tightly,

"He said...terrible things, Andrew..."

"Yes, he did," Andrew nodded his head miserably as he rested his cheek against the top of her head,

"And yes, those words do hurt...but we can help each other through this; we always have..."

"I never want to see him again," Monica shook her head forcefully as she grasped at the back of her friend's jacket with trembling fingers,

"But I-I'm going to miss A-Angel and Cindy so...so...much..."

"And they said they were going to miss us just as much," The older angel whispered back as he finally allowed his own tears to fall down his handsome face again,

"Mon', I'm so sorry you heard all of that..."

"I..I didn't want to believe any of it was true, but some of it is…" She sobbed brokenly, burying her face against his chest.

"Angel Girl, don't do this, please?" He pleaded with her, already knowing what she was thinking; what she had been thinking but had not voiced in nearly two months. He knew the wounds had to be stated in order to heal for all of them, but he wasn't sure if he could bear this one,

"You did not cause that fire, okay?"

"He…He would have been in jail, Andrew…he would have been in jail!" Monica cried out, nearing hysteria,

"He…he never would have gotten B-Brady and Angel….he never would have gotten YOU! I know…I know you don't blame me…but it's still the truth…and I'm sorry…I'm just so, so very sorry…"

"Monica, please..." Andrew continued pleading as he grasped her by the shoulders and gently pulled her away from him so that he could look deep into her eyes,

"Do not do this-"

"Andrew, what part of 'Do not go to him' don't I understand?" The younger angel wept as she looked up at her best friend,

"I should have known that the Father had a reason, and I found out that reason the hardest way of all! By almost losing my best friend!" She put a hand over her mouth, feeling like she was going to throw up any minute over the realization of just how much wrong she had done the past few months,

"I-I don't know why I continue doing these kinds of things...but I do. And when it happens, it ends up hurting you just as much, and that's never something I can handle, Andrew!"

"Listen to me," Andrew began, even as she tried to pull away from him, but he firmly took her face in his hands and repeated the words more forcefully,

"Listen to me!" As she stopped struggling, though the tears continued to fall, he began speaking to her, trying to make his trembling voice as soothing as he possibly could,

"I love you; nothing on this earth changes that and had you any idea of what could have happened, I know you would not have gone to him that day…"

"But you told me not to!" She sobbed hysterically,

"You told me 'no'!"

"I'm not finished," Andrew told her, his hands shaking as he continued to hold her face in them,

"You were more than honest from the start of this, Monica. You told me upfront that you lacked control when it came to what had happened to Angel. Do you remember that? You told me not to let you do anything stupid and I failed you with that. I knew you were struggling and I didn't see it in time. You are not taking the responsibility for this, do you understand? I'm not going to let you, Mon'," Tears fell from his eyes as he watched her sob,

"Angel Girl, don't you know how much I love you and that I know you would never, never allow any harm to come to me if you could avoid it?"

"Yes..." Monica's shoulders shook violently as she tried to organize her thoughts for her to speak clearly,

"I mean...I think so...Andrew, sometimes I'm not really sure! I know how much you love me and all, but...but..."

His voice trembling, Andrew interrupted quietly,

"But what, Monica?"

"But...sometimes I think that the things I do are...are unforgiveable, Andrew!" She continued sobbing as she tried to get the words out without hurting him again,

"And I wonder if-if that would be the end and you wouldn't be able to forgive me...I love you so, so much, Andy, and I can't face the rest of my existence without you! I would never hurt you intentionally, but I can't help wondering at times if...if sometimes I go too far, and you'll give up on me someday..."

"Not ever," Andrew whispered without hesitation,

"Sweetheart, I want you to hear this and remember it, okay? There is nothing…NOTHING that you could ever do that would cause me to give up on you, or to stop loving you. You are my whole world, little girl. As much as I love all our friends, you mean everything to me…everything! There is nothing you could ever do that I would ever consider 'unforgivable' because I know your heart and how beautiful it is and how the only way you could ever hurt anyone is unintentionally. Yes, you can be impulsive at times, but it is one of the things I love about you and nine times out of ten, that impulsiveness works in your favor or the favor of your assignment," Brushing at her tears with his fingertips, he continued,

"I don't ever want to hear you doubt the depth of my love for you, okay? In it's own way, it's like the Father's love for us…it is unending and unconditional and that fact is never, ever going to change."

Trying to gain control of her emotions as she took in all he had said, Monica struggled to speak through her tears, but Andrew stopped her gently.

"Calm down first, baby girl, okay?" He whispered, pulling her gently back into his arms as he rubbed her back and laid gentle kisses on her head as she struggled to calm herself down,

"It's okay, little one…it's okay…"

Still struggling to gain control of her mixed emotions, Monica fell silent as she just allowed her best friend to hold her tightly, and as she wrapped her arms as tightly as she could around him, she whispered miserably into his chest,

"I-I love you so much..."

Giving her a loving squeeze, he kissed the top her head as he whispered back, his voice still laced with tears,

"Ditto, Angel Girl."

Cindy paced the floor in the bathroom that night, her stomach in knots, as she glanced at her watch once more. She hadn't planned on doing this tonight, but she had felt unable to wait until morning. The not knowing was tearing her apart, though she hoped the only for concern was that she was so stressed as her life seemed to be falling apart around her. Another glance at her watch indicated she needed to wait another minute.

Today had gone better than she had expected it to. The gathering at the house after the service at the grave site had been strained but bearable. Colleagues and friends from the hospital had more or less taken care of everything from setting up the food to cleaning up afterwards. The only things missing had been her daughters and the angels.

It had been wonderful to see them at the service, Andrew's compassion and gentleness exactly what she had needed in those moments following Paddy's service, but she had then missed them twice as much at the gathering at the house. She was still deeply troubled by Monica's absence as well, it just not being like her angelic sister to stay away like that, and Angelica had felt the loss just as greatly.

Angel had retired to her room in tears once they had gotten home and had remained there until she had cried herself to sleep, while Wendy had left with Amy and her parents. Sighing softly, Cindy knew she couldn't blame either of her daughter's for isolating themselves from the rest of the family right now, as things had changed so much. She and Brady were at it constantly and he had taken to sleeping on the couch the last few nights. If the argument wasn't about the angels, then it was about Paddy or the girls, and it was quickly becoming more than Cindy could bear. Her husband was not handling this well at all and it was quickly putting a wall between them and she no longer felt strong enough to try to knock it down.

Looking at her watch once more, she picked up the small plastic applicator and felt herself sink to the floor in despair.

It was positive. She was pregnant and she had never in her life felt more alone.

_Written by: CI and KP_

A few days later, Wendy knelt shakily down next to her brother's gravesite and looked through tear-filled blue eyes at the words that were engraved on the stone:

"Beloved brother and son, friend to all.

We love and miss you, Paddy"

Lifting a hand to wipe at the moisture underneath her eyes, the teenager wasn't sure of what to say right now, so she was just silent for a few minutes. Finally, she was unable to stay quiet any longer and she whispered softly to Patrick's grave,

"Oh Paddy...why did you have to go and do that...we miss you so much, big brother." She looked down at the boquet of flowers in her trembling hands before laying it on the grave,

"I...The family isn't doing so well right now, Paddy. Mom and dad are constantly fighting, and I've moved out of the house for a few d-days because of it..." Wendy sniffed and felt more hot tears welling up in her eyes, but she didn't move to wipe them away. Instead, she just ran a hand over the stone and continued speaking shakily,

"Dad has kicked the angels out the house also...he-he forbids us to ever see them again..."

With a choked up sob_, _Wendy removed her hand and covered her face with them as she wept,

"Why did you have to kill yourself, Patrick Sullivan? Didn't you know how much we loved you and cared about you? You just had to take your own life now, didn't you?"

"Wendy?"

The sound of her father's voice caused her to bristle noticeably as she hastily wiped her hand over her eyes to clear her tears. She remained silent though, waiting to see what he would say.

"Honey, can we please talk?" He asked gently as he ventured a step closer. He had barely spoken to his daughter since she had left the house several days ago and he wasn't very happy with this estrangement from her.

"I have nothing to say to you unless you are ready to let the angels back into our lives and you stop fighting with mom," She replied as calmly as she could, though she kept her back to him.

"Wendy, we don't need angels in our lives to be a family," Brady stated, immediately being put on the defensive.

Just at that one simple remark, Wendy felt anger like she had never felt before as she whirled around to face him,

"You don't think so? Have you taken a real good look at our family lately, dad because in case you haven't, let me tell you what I see! Angel being pregnant is the least of our worries, as right now she is so depressed, that I'm worried about her! Did you know that, dad? I'm not even there right now and I know because I call her every night. She's miserable and its work to even get her to talk! You are sleeping on the couch because you and mom can't even be in the same room together without fighting! Paddy is dead and instead of being there for your family, you keep looking for someone to blame! How about blaming Paddy, daddy? He's the one that did this; no one else! You want to call us a family? A family that doesn't need angels right now? I don't know, dad, it seems to be we should be the poster children for Divine Intervention at the moment!"

Brady's face flushed a deep red as he took a deep breath and forced himself to not snap back at his daughter,

"Wendy, you don't really know what your mother and I are discussing-"

"It's not even discussing!" Wendy snapped, forcing back tears as she wasn't allow herself to cry right now in front of her father,

"It's called yelling! You guys don't even seem to CARE that there are other people around who are effected by this too, and just because you're mad at the angels doesn't mean the rest of the family are! We NEED them, dad; things were always better when they were around!"

Brady sucked in a sharp breath at her words and he folded his arms across his chest, determinted to not lose his temper,

"Honey...they were sent to try and help your brother, and instead of doing that, Patrick wound up dead-"

"He killed himself, daddy! Andrew, Monica and Kevin didn't put the knife in his hand and force it on him, telling him to go ahead and die!" Fuming, the teenger whirled around and stomped away, deciding that she couldn't talk to her father about this right now. She was far too angry, and if she continued, she may say something she would regret.

"Wendy!" Brady called after her, but his daughter never turned back.

Unable to sleep that night, Monica slipped from her bed and padded quietly downstairs, surprised to find Kevin sitting in the chair in front of the fire, his dark eyes staring listlessly into the flames. Grabbing the afghan from the back of the couch, the Irish angel sat down on the floor near him and stated quietly,  
"You couldn't sleep either."

"No," Kevin replied softly with a small sigh as he regarded her in silence for a moment,  
"I keep going over things over and over again in my mind, trying to see all the things I could have done differently."

Nodding her head in understanding, she watched the flames flicker in the fireplace,  
"Nothings really helping though, is it?"

"Not really. Though I don't see how it can help when I know that some of the things I did caused other things to happen that maybe would not have otherwise," He remarked sadly.

"I know what you mean," Monica stated softly, drawing her knees up to her chin,  
"I think that if we had done a few things differently, this would have had a totally different outcome and maybe Paddy would still be alive…"

"And maybe we wouldn't be banned from the Sullivan's lives for the rest of eternity," Kevin finished for her as rested his cheek in the palm of his hand, his tired brown eyes focused on the fireplace,

"Maybe I wouldn't still feel like a total jerk..."

Looking up at her younger friend, Monica laid a gentle hand on his knee as sadness once again filled her eyes,

"But neither of us can change the past 2 months."

"That's what I hate the most," The youngest angel whispered softly,

"Not being able to change my actions. If only I could re-wind my life the past few months, I would've done so many things differently..."

"But unfortunately, we can't," The Irish angel uttered, removing her hand and turning back to the fireplace in font of them,

"Tell me, Kev...did you learn anything from this whole assignment?"

Kevin appeared thoughtful for a moment even as pain continued to flicker in his eyes,

"Two things mostly, I think. I've learned to never think that my actions are going unnoticed by someone they matter to, like with my refusing to see Andrew and Paddy then refusing to see Amy. I also now know that having you and Simba trust me, is one of the most important things in my existence and I don't want to ever betray that again," Looking down at her, he saw understanding in her brown eyes,

"What about you?"

Sighing softly, she turned her eyes back to the fire once more,

"Two things as well, but they tie in together. The first is that I know I have to work on my temper, as it tends to get me and others around me into trouble when I lose it. It was my temper that took me to George Keyser's classroom that day, and Kev, I just can't stop thinking about how if I had just listened to Andrew and the Father, and not gone there, the difference it would have made. He would have been arrested that day, there never would have been a fire, you never would have had trouble facing Andrew, maybe more attention would have been paid to Paddy," Drawing in a shaky breath she rested her forehead against her knees,

"I just want to feel better about all of this, and for the life of me Kevin, I don't know how."

"Me neither, Cupcake," The youngest angel replied with a heavy sigh, reaching out and resting his hand on his co-worker's back, rubbing it gently,

"Right now, I just feel so numb after everything that's happened, that I don't even feel up to praying about it..."

"Why not?" Monica whispered as she never lifted her head.

"Because...because I don't know what to say," Kevin replied after a few moment of silence,

"This is all such a jumbled web and I've got so many mixed feelings..."

"We all do, Kev." Andrew's tired voice sounded from the staircase and both angels looked up to see their friend joining them. Taking a seat on the couch behind Monica, Andrew rested his head against the back of the couch and lifted his green eyes to the ceiling,

"We each have our own mixed feelings about all of this...but telling the Father about it is the best thing we can do right now..."

"You don't really sound so convinced, Andrew," Kevin remarked, his eyes on his supervisor.

Shrugging his shoulders, Andrew replied tiredly,

"Couldn't sleep, just like you two. Got alot on my mind as well."

"Why do you not sound convinced about talking to the Father?" Kevin asked softly.

"Maybe because even though I've been talking to Him, I'm not feeling anymore relief than you two are right now," He replied sadly,

"I keep thinking that maybe if I can at least help you two, it would help me, but so far that isn't working either."

"Unfortunately, it wasn't one of those bad cases that cocoa and popcorn and a night in front of the fire can fix," Monica whispered, never raising her head,

"This one was much worse than that."

"Yeah, it was," Andrew replied softly, his heart heavy not only with his own grief but also with his concern over his two charges. It never took Kevin long to bounce back from anything, but this time, he hadn't so much as seen a smile from his youngest charge in days, not even a half-hearted one. On top of that, despite his talk with Monica the other night, she had said very little since then and had gone back to sleeping in her own room and though he hoped she was just trying to work some thing out, he had a feeling her emotions were still very mixed, both about the fire and his ability to forgive her.

"Andrew," Kevin's voice broke into his thoughts,

"You know what Monica and I most regret about this whole assignment….is there anything you regret or feel like you've learned?"

Andrew fell silent for a few moments and the only noise heard in the living room was the crackling of the flames in the fireplace. Feeling Kevin's eyes still on him, the older angel finally turned to face him and drew in a deep breath, trying to put all of his jumbled thoughts into words,

"Well...I have learned the past 2 months to trust the Father in everything. The fire is the best example I can give..." He sighed heavily as he lowered his head,

"I was having so much trouble trying to figure out why He was allowing it to happen to me, but I just needed to be reminded to trust that He knows what He's doing and that something good will come out of it. You helped me with that, Kev..." He attempted a tiny smile in his youngest charge's direction before it disappeared,

"As for things I regret..." Andrew drew in a shaky breath before letting it out slowly,

"I regret letting you stay with Thorn that second day on the streets, Kevin. If only I hadn't made Monica and I leave that day, regardless if he threatened us, maybe we could've had more time to talk to Paddy. Because we got separated in the first place, which was one of the rules I set and broke in two days...we only got a chance to talk to Paddy once and now...we've lost that chance. Yes, he's with the Father, but that doesn't change the fact that the Sullivan's are now heart-broken and angry...they've been through so much already and I hate seeing them continuing to suffer."

Monica felt tears filling her eyes as she listened to her best friend's words of regret as guilt once again flowed through her. She had snapped at Thorn continuously that horrible morning and once again, had she just been able to control her temper, there may not have been any threat and Andrew wouldn't have felt the urge to leave to protect her. She couldn't bring herself to state this out loud however, for the same reason she hadn't been sure of whether or not to join him at the cabin to begin with; she was just so full of regrets and guilt over this whole thing and Andrew had already taken so much time for her already.

"Well, I'm glad I was able to help with something, Andrew," Kevin replied softly,

"And I broke that rule too…I should have gone with you that day, but I already told you that…"

"And I've already told you it's forgiven, Kev," Andrew replied wearily,

"We both learned something that day, I guess."

Rising to her feet, Monica walked over to the door and took her jacket down from the coat rack,

"I'm going for a walk," She offered shakily, her need to escape and clear her head becoming more and more urgent.

Before either of her friends had time to reply, the Irish angel bolted quickly out the door and shut it behind her. By this time, Andrew was already on his feet, determined not to let his best friend go out there alone, especially at this time of night. Shooting a quick glance at Kevin, the older angel ran towards the door and threw it open, but found that Monica was already halfway down the road, her pace quicker then he had ever seen it before.

Andrew leaned his head against the doorjam for a moment, wanting to go after her, but chose not to as he finally closed the door back up, but leaving it unlocked for when she returned. As he turned back around and saw Kevin looking sadly at him, the older angel leaned up against the door and sighed softly,

"She's more stubborn then the both of us combined..."

Kevin shrugged his shoulders and let out a sigh before speaking up,

"Are you staying up to wait for her?"

Nodding his head, Andrew moved back to the couch and took a seat on it, lifting his hands to rub at his exhausted green eyes,

"Yeah...so I might as well crash out here until she returns."

"Do you want company?" Kevin asked softly, rubbing at his own tired eyes.

"I'm okay, Kev," He replied, seeing the exhaustion in his youngest charge's eyes,

"Go on up to bed."

Nodding his head, he moved to hug his supervisor tightly, seeing the deep sadness and worry in his green eyes,

"Eventually, we'll all be okay, Simba, you know?"

"I hope so, Kevin," Andrew replied with a sigh,

"I sure hope so."

As he watched his charge head upstairs, Andrew leaned his head back once more, knowing sleep would never come now. Closing his eyes briefly, he whispered out loud,

"Father, give me the wisdom to deal with this, please? I know that You know that your angels make mistakes, but this time, the mistakes were just all the more crucial and though they can't be undone, please help me to take away the guilt as it feels like more than any of us can bear right now," Opening his eyes once more, he settled back to wait for his friend to return.

Wendy didn't arrive back at the Richard's home until later that night and by the time she walked through the front door, the teenager was surprised to see Anna waiting up for her in the living room. Although she looked exhausted, the woman also appeared concerned,

"Honey, where have you been?" She asked, rising to her feet and walking over to Wendy.

"Out." The girl replied, shrugging out of her jacket and looking down at her feet,

"I went to Paddy's grave earlier this afternoon and ran into my dad...but I didn't feel like returning here for the day, so I just walked around."

"Until past midnight, Wendy?" Anna raised an eyebrow and laid both hands on the girl's slim shoulders,

"Honey, I was worried about you...I know Mark and I aren't your parents, but we were really concerned."

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Richards…I was just upset and lost track of time, I guess," Wendy replied with a tired sigh.

"I can understand that, sweetheart, but your parents have entrusted you to us for the time being, so we need to treat you as one of our own for the moment and that means knowing where you are and you being back here at a decent hour," Seeing distress in Wendy's blue eyes, Anna softened her tone,

"We care about your well being, Wendy, and we don't want anything to happen to you. That would be more than we could bear and certainly more than your parents could bear. I have no problem giving you space to grieve, I just ask that you check in with us is all. That's fair enough, isn't it?"

Wendy nodded her head,

"It's more than fair, Mrs. Richards and I really am sorry," A thought struck her then and regret filled her tired face,

"I missed my nightly call to Angel too. Did she call here for me?"

"No, honey, she didn't," Anna replied softly,

"She's probably sound asleep by now anyway."

Wendy sighed in exhaustion as she lowered her blue eyes to the carpet,

"I guess I'll be heading up to bed as well...I'll give Angel a call in the morning and apologize." Lifting her eyes to the woman's, she sighed again as she spoke somewhat tearfully,

"I'm really sorry about that, Mrs. Richards..."

"It's all forgiven, honey," She reassured as she gave the teenager a gentle hug,

"Don't you worry about it; just worry about going upstairs now and getting some rest. You look like you need it more then I do."

Nodding her head, Wendy pulled away and attempted a half-hearted smile at Anna,

"Thanks...for everything..."

Leaning down to kiss the girl's forehead, Anna smiled sadly at her,

"It's our pleasure." With a sigh, she watched as Wendy brushed past her and headed towards the staircase and the next thing she heard was the sound of the bedroom door closing. Sitting back down on the couch again, Anna raised her eyes to the ceiling and spoke aloud to the calmness of the living room,

"Lord, please be with Wendy and her family right now during this more then difficult time. They need to feel Your comfort and love more then anything right now, and I am trying to bring it to young Wendy, but You are the real Healer and I lift them all up to you." Sighing heavily, Anna continued,

"And I also lift up that dear girl's friends...she told us about them in the car the other day after Paddy's memorial service, and right now I pray that you'll bring Brady around and make him see that none of this is their friend's fault, and that You always have a plan. Thank you, Lord. Amen."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Andrew was close to getting ready to throw his own coat on and head out to look for his best friend, when finally, at nearly 4:00 in the morning, the door to the cabin quietly opened and he saw Monica slip inside. As she hung her jacket back on the rack, Andrew, who had been ready to tear into her out of fear over her having been gone so long, stopped himself.

He could tell she had been crying and his heart ached over the look of complete despair on her face. He knew that all angels made mistakes and that they often felt terrible for making them, but he also knew she was punishing herself far harder than could ever be warranted and he was determined that it be stopped before the sun rose again in the sky. The guilt was keeping her from healing from Paddy's death and the hurt inflicted by Brady's decision, as she couldn't seem to move past the things she had done wrong.

As she hung up her jacket and slowly turned around, Monica's swollen eyes grew wide,

"Andrew…what are you still doing up?"

"Waiting for you, Angel Girl, and I was beginning to get worried," Seeing her lower her eyes, he sighed softly and indicated the couch,

"Sit down, Mon'. We need to talk."

Fear sparked in her dark eyes as she tried to protest,

"I'm really tired, Andrew…please, can't it wait…?"

"No," Andrew replied, his voice showing a hint of sternness,

"It can't wait. We need to talk now and neither one of us is getting any sleep until we understand one another perfectly."

"Andrew, please...not now," The Irish angel whispered miserably as she tried to make her way past him, but he caught her arm before she could head up the stairs.

"Monica, we really need to talk...now." Andrew interrupted, his voice a little bit firmer. Seeing his best friend sigh in exhaustion and then nod her head, the older angel inwardly gave a sigh of relief as she reluctantly took a seat on the couch and he sat down next to her. Reaching for the Irish angel's cold, trembling hands, Andrew rubbed her fingers with his strong ones to warm them up before speaking,

"Angel Girl, I think you know what I want to talk to you about..."

"Andrew, we already discussed this the other day," Monica weakly interrupted, lowering her eyes to avoid her best friend's gaze,

"You know how I feel about myself after all that's happened-"

"And that's why we have to discuss this again now, and I want for you to listen to me well, little girl, because it's important," Andrew gently interrupted her this time, giving her hands a tight squeeze.

Finally lifting her brown eyes to meet his, the little Irish angel drew in a shuddering breath and replied,

"I guess I really have no choice right now, huh?"

Smiling slightly, Andrew shook his head tiredly,

"Not really, Angel Girl."

Sensing that he was waiting for her to speak, she gazed sadly down at their joined hands,  
"I can't get past it, Andrew. In two instances, when I lost my temper, first at George Keyser, then at Thorn, it was like a domino effect…one horrible thing led to another and the next thing we knew, Paddy was dead…"

"They were mistakes, Monica," Andrew told her gently,  
"And you know what? You're going to make more of them; we all are. Yes, I've asked you before to work on that temper of yours, but honey, I don't expect you to be able to turn it around over night. Thorn made you feel threatened and vulnerable, two things you hate feeling, with good reason and I'm glad to see a bit of fire in you in those kinds of circumstances. Thorn brought out the worst in me too, partially because for the same reasons you don't like to feel threatened and vulnerable, I hate seeing anyone putting you in that position. I reacted in anger, both when I hit him and when I made the decision we were leaving," He drew in a deep breath, praying he was getting through to her,  
"As for Keyser, we've been over this and over this, sweetie, and I think you're forgetting someone very important in that whole situation," Seeing her finally look up at him once more, tears and curiosity in her tired eyes, he continued gently,  
"Rachel. Her family had been left in limbo for 20 years wondering what happened to her and had you not walked into his office that day, you never would have seen him and you never would have remembered that it was he who killed that little girl right in front of you. Rachel's family now knows the truth. The Father took your actions that day and turned them into something good for a family who had suffered for 20 years. Monica, that has to be worth something to you. It's worth it to me and to the Father as well as for that girl's family."

"Maybe so, Andrew, but...look at all the bad things that have happened because of it-"

"Angel Girl, let's stop there for a minute, okay?" Andrew gently interrupted, releasing her hands and bringing them to her face so that their eyes met. Waiting until she finally met his green ones, the older angel continued slowly and gently,

"We have got to stop dwelling on the negative and think of the positive, Mon. Sweetie, that little girl's family now has peace, and that never would've happened if you didn't face Keyser like you did! Yes, bad things did happen since then, but the Father turned it into something good and He's healing Rachel's family now because Keyser is now in prison."

The little Irish angel lowered her head miserably and turned her head away from her best friend,

"I guess I still don't understand how you're always able to forgive me so easily, Andrew...I don't know if I'll ever figure it out..."

Reaching for her face again, Andrew turned it towards him and blinked back a round of tears as he replied lovingly,

"I can forgive you because I love you. I LOVE you, Monica, and I can always forgive you. Remember this, little one: None of us are perfect. All right? None of us, and we're going to continue making mistakes and all, but the good thing is that we learned from those errors and we're going to try and do better next time. Please understand where I'm coming from, Monica..."

"I'm trying…" Monica whispered tearfully, the tears now making their way down her pale face,

"But I get so scared sometimes…I'll realize I've done something stupid, or I've taken advantage of our friendship…and I just wait for it to be over…"

"For what to be over, sweetheart?" He whispered, before reality hit him,

"For us to be over? For our friendship to be over?" He drew in a sharp breath with the realization that still, after all these years the old fears could resurface…or maybe, deep down inside of her, they had never left. Tears escaping his own eyes, he spoke softly,

"That will never happen, Angel Girl. Our friendship is a gift the Father gave to us and there are so many things about this gift I'm still learning, Monica, and I'm not about to give up knowing about those things; things about you and things about our friendship. This gift leaves me in awe all the time, and after all these years, what I know beyond the shadow of a doubt is that our friendship has no limits or boundaries. There has been no situation thus far that our friendship has not been able to reach, no matter how terrible the situation is. You have always been, and will FOREVER be, my Angel Girl and my best friend," Seeing grief in her eyes, he knew he was finally close to the surface as he finished in a loving whisper,

"My love for you is unconditional. It doesn't fade away with each mistake. Now you just need to accept the fact that some things, little girl, are never going to change. No matter what else changes, this.." He indicated with his finger, the two of them,

"Never goes away. This friendship is here to stay and there isn't anything out there strong enough to tear it apart…I won't allow anything to tear us apart."

Monica was quiet for a moment as soft sobs shook through her, before she tried to speak,

"Thank you…so much has changed and I…I was just afraid of losing you…just like…just like the…Sullivan's and…Paddy….oh God, Paddy…."

Tears of pain and relief raced down Andrew's handsome face, as his dearest friend finally got past her guilt and began to release the grief over what Paddy had done. Pulling her into his lap, he enfolded her in his arms, giving her the time and the comfort to release the pain.

"Andy...I miss him so much..." She sobbed brokenly as her best friend cradled her gently in his arms and she buried her face against the nape of his neck, her own arms clinging tightly to him,

"I just miss him so m-much...it brings back memories of W-Wendy Hendrickson..."

"I know..." Andrew whispered into her hair as he allowed his own tears to fall unashamedly,

"So do I, little one..."

The minutes passed slowly as the two angels clung to each other like a lifeone, and Andrew continued to rock her lovingly in his lap like she was a little girl again. As the older angel closed his green eyes tightly, he let out a heavy sigh before lifting up one last prayer to the Father to help see them through the next few weeks and months...whatever they may hold.

"Angel?" Cindy said softly, entering her daughter's dark bedroom, her blue eyes filled with worry. Angel hadn't uttered a word in two days since the funeral and had barely come out of her room. She was picking at her meals, eating enough for one, yet alone not enough for the baby she was carrying.

Getting no response, Cindy sat down on the edge of her bed and lovingly brushed a wisp of blond hair from her daughter's eyes,

"I'm worried about you, sweetheart."

Closing her eyes, Angel sighed softly, only wanting to be left alone. Her world was closing in around her and her grief over so many losses was more than she could possibly bear at the moment and she wasn't about to open up to her parents, who were more concerned with fighting with each other, then they seemed to be with her lately,

"I'm fine." She forced herself to whisper,

"No need to worry about me."

Frowning in concern, Cindy removed her hand and put it in her lap as she replied,

"Honey, you know as well as I do that I have a right to be worried about you. You're barely eating enough for only one person, and you're carrying a child inside of you right now; you're not talking to anyone and you haven't come out of your room since the funeral. Baby, please, talk to me..."

"Why should you be worried about me, mom? It seems I'm the least of your concerns right now, when you're just continuing to bicker away with dad," Angel mumbled, never once meeting her mother's eyes,

"I don't see why I should come out of my room. After all, do you just want me to listen to you guys tear at each other's eyes out there? I don't think so..."

Cindy's eyes widened in horror at her youngest daughter's words and it took a few moments for her to find her voice,

"Angel, please don't do this-"

"Do what?" Angel snapped, finally looking Cindy's way and narrowing her blue eyes,

"First, you want me to talk and then when I express my anger, you're telling me not to. Make up your mind, mom!"

Trying to remain as calm as she could, Cindy drew in a deep breath,

"Angel, I know things are tough right now-."

"Tough?" Angel replied, angry tears filling her blue eyes,

"Tough doesn't begin to sum it up, mother. Paddy is dead, you and daddy just fight every time you are in the same room together, my sister barely lives here anymore, the angels aren't allowed here anymore, I'm supposed to go back to school in two days and I'm showing and everyone is going to know I'm pregnant…so where does that leave me, mom?"

"Sweetheart, we can talk about this-," Cindy pleaded, but Angel interrupted her.

"Don't you get it? I don't want to talk to you, mom! I want to talk to Monica…or Andrew or someone who isn't going to sit here and tell me how God has a plan and then walk out of the room and start yelling at dad! How can you listen to me when you can't even listen to each other!"

Choking on a sob, Cindy tried once again as she reached for her daughter's hand,

"Baby, you know what your father said-"

"See? There you go again!" Angel shouted, yanking her hand out of her mother's grasp and sitting up straight on the bed,

"Just go, mom! Go! I don't want to talk to anyone unless they're here to tell me that I can see Monica and Andrew again, or to tell me that you and dad are going to stop fighting with one another! Just GO!"

Cringing at her daughter's words, Cindy rose shakily to her feet and nodded down at Angel,

"I'm sorry, Angel...I really am sorry, sweetheart..." Turning around, the woman headed slowly for the door, but not before saying one final thing to Angelica,

"I'll try and talk to your father again about the angels, but I can't promise you anything..." She stopped as she noticed that Angel was now ignoring her; her daughter was now curled up on her side and her back was to her as she face the wall. Sighing sadly, Cindy blinked back tears before turning around and leaving the room.

"Tess? Rose? What are you two doing here?" Andrew asked, late the following morning, as his two older friends appeared as he was cooking breakfast. His two charges were still fast asleep and for the first time in days, Andrew was feeling a little bit of relief. With Kevin and Monica both beginning to accept the mistakes they had made, he was hoping that the three of them were finally going to turn a corner in healing. His best friend had cried herself to sleep in his arms early this morning and he had carried her up to bed, before getting a few more hours sleep himself. He had checked on them both when he had woken up not long ago and had found them both sleeping rather peacefully for the first time in days.

"We came to check on you three, honey," Rose replied, as she moved to hug him tightly,

"And we have a bit of news for you, but before that, how are things going?"

Embracing his friend and former supervisor back tightly, Andrew smiled slightly as he felt Rose give him a loving squeeze before releasing him,

"A little bit better then yesterday, which is good...things weren't pretty last night, though; but the three of us stayed up and talked, and hopefully now, we're starting to get past some of this guilt..." The youngest angel shrugged his shoulders as he lowered his green eyes.

"That's good to hear, baby," Tess smiled at him as she moved forward to hug him tightly as well,

"That's really good to hear."

Pulling gently away from his older friend, Andrew then looked up and once again smiled slightly at them,

"So what kind of news do you have?"

Exchanging looks with one another, Rose grasped onto Andrew's hand and led him over to the kitchen table where the three angels took a seat,

"Sweetheart, the Father just gave us some news that He wanted us to share with you." Looking once again over at Tess, the Search and Rescue angel then turned back to her former charge,

"Andrew, this was never expected, but the Father feels that it's time. You, your Angel Girl and Kevin are once again assigned to the Sullivan's. In spite of what Brady has done and said, and in spite of how he feels right now, the entire family needs the three of you there. You see...Cindy's pregnant again, and she hasn't told Brady yet or the rest of the family; and the girls aren't doing well at all." She stopped as she saw her friend's green eyes widen in shock, but he didn't say a word. Giving his hand a gentle squeeze, Rose continued,

"The Father wants you three to head back there tomorrow morning. Now, I can't promise you it will be pretty...but it has to be done."

Trying to take all of this information in at once, Andrew's jaw dropped as he looked at each of his friends,

"We're supposed to go...back?"

"Yes, baby," Tess sighed softly as she reached for his other hand,

"You're all back on this assignment."

_Written by: CI and KP_

"How can you ask this of me?" Monica cried out, as the argument caught fire once again,

"Brady wanted us out of their lives, and now we're supposed to go back?"

"It's where we've been assigned, Monica," Andrew replied as patiently as he could, exchanging a look with Kevin,

"It's asking a lot of any of us after all that has happened, but it's where God wants us to be."

"Well, I don't know if I can do it!" She replied, her Irish voice heavy with frustration.

"Are we being assigned to anyone in particular, Andrew?" Kevin asked wearily, trying to change the subject momentarily in order for his two friends to take a breather.

Andrew ran a hand through his hair, knowing this was not about to go over well and he was still questioning it himself,

"We're all going to be helping with the girls," He began carefully,

"Kevin, you're going to also be a bit of damage control, depending on where further help is needed, as I'll be assigned to Cindy and Monica to Brady…"

"What?!" Monica's eyes widened in absolute disbelief,

"This has to be a joke!"

"Would I joke about this, Angel Girl?" Andrew asked tensely. He hated this whole situation; it was too soon for them and they weren't ready, but they were also God's servants and this is where they were being called to be.

"Well, I won't do it, Andrew! I won't!" She retorted, crossing her arms in front of her, unable to believe this whole situation.

Andrew took a deep breath, not liking what he was about to say, but knowing he had to say it,

"The way I see it, Monica, is that you have two choices. You either deal with this and do what is being asked of you…or you can walk off the assignment," Seeing tears spring to her eyes, he continued,

"I know this is hard, especially after the things Brady said, but I can't give you permission to refuse the assignment. You have to do that all on your own."

"How can you do this, Andrew?" Monica whispered, regretting her own words as soon as she spoke then just by seeing the look in her best friend's eyes.

"I'm not doing anything to you, Monica, and you know it," Andrew replied tersely,

"I did not pick and choose this assignment, and I am not joking around about this. None of this is my plan, and if I had a choice, I wouldn't go back there either. But the Father Himself is sending us there, and that's where we're supposed to be."

The Irish angel's face flushed red as she lowered her brown eyes away from Andrew and she fiddled with the pillow she held in her hands,

"I still don't want to do this..."

"None of us do, Monica," Kevin jumped in, looking at his Irish co-worker,

"None of us like it, but Andrew's just telling us what the Father told him...we really have no choice, do we, Andrew?"

Sighing tiredly, Andrew lowered his green eyes to the bed and replied heavily,

"As I said, you really have two choices: Walk off the assignment, or accept it. But of course, you have free will just like I do...and I'm hoping you'll make the correct choice."

"You know I'm in, Andrew," Kevin sighed heavily,

"Like it or not."

Andrew managed a small smile in his youngest charge's direction,

"I appreciate that, Kev'," He replied, before turning his eyes back to his best friend and raising one eyebrow.

"I didn't even go to Paddy's funeral because Brady didn't want us around…" Monica remarked irritably.

"And that was your decision as well," Andrew reminded her, trying to keep his own short fuse under control after the past two months.

Her arms still crossed stubbornly, Monica bit her lip and turned her auburn head away from her friends, going over everything that was being said,

"Andrew, I cannot do this...I just can't! Why can't you understand that I cannot go back there?"

His patience starting to run thin, Andrew drew in a deep breath and tried to keep his voice as steady as possible,

"Because I don't want to see you walk off this assignment, Mon. Remember how Sam gave me a choice after Paddy ran away? I wasn't about to put either of you in a situation on the streets, where you were capable of getting hurt; but I knew what had to be done, and that accept the assignment. So what's your choice, Angel Girl?"

Clenching and unclenching her fists, Monica rose to her feet and looked down at her best friend and supervisor, knowing full well she was going to be disappointing him once again, but unable to keep the words from coming,

"I'm not going." With that, the Irish angel turned on her heel and hurried out of the room.

"Monica!" Andrew shouted after her, his patience completely worn now. Though he had given her a choice, he had fully expected her to pick the right one.

"Simba, maybe you two need to cool down a bit?" Kevin suggested, wincing a bit as Andrew went out the bedroom door after the Irish angel,

"Oh man, this is so not good…"

Finding her in the living room, staring angrily out the bay window, the supervising angel leaned up against the wall and watched her in silence for a moment before speaking,

"I can't believe you are doing this."

"Doing what?" Monica replied, her voice tinged with anger,

"What Brady wants? What he asked for? I'm just staying out of his way, Andrew…I wouldn't want to cause anymore trouble for them or anything. Just be careful nothing happens to you lest the house stop…"

"Monica, I am not the enemy here, and you know it!" The older angel raised his voice a notch, although he tried to keep it as under control as possible,

"Of course Brady wanted us out of their house, but the Father is calling us back! Brady Sullivan isn't God, Monica!"

"I never said he was!" The Irish angel replied, her back still turned to him,

"But what am I supposed to feel when I keep getting pulled in many different directions, Andrew?"

"Mon, I'm not pulling you in ANY different directions! And neither is the Father! You're allowing yourself to take all of his words to heart, and NOT allow yourself to believe that he'll come around! That family needs help, and we're the only ones that can give it to them! I can't believe that you're actually refusing this...Tell me, Monica, what am I supposed to tell Angel this time when she sees the rest of us back, but not you?"

"You seemed to do just fine at the funeral!" She snapped back, knowing in her heart she wasn't really angry with him, but she hadn't felt as if she hadn't had any control over her emotions in weeks,

"I'm sure you'll think of something!"

"I'm not lying to her if that is what you are asking!" Andrew retorted, his eyes flashing anger,

"If she asks, she gets the truth-."

"I never asked you to lie! You said this was my decision but yet you won't lay off when I make it!" Turning to face him, her own eyes flashed fire.

"Because I don't want to see you blow this!" He snapped, venturing a step closer to her,

"And that is what is about to happen!"

"Why are you pushing me like this?" Monica cried back as she looked through narrowed eyes at him,

"I'm not going back there, and I don't care if I blow it! So lay off!"

Andrew glared furiously at his best friend and shook his head hard, unable to stop the angry tears from falling from his eyes,

"Fine. If that's how you're going to play this, then so be it. Do what you want, Monica...just do what you want..." Brushing past her, the supervisor grabbed his jacket off of the coat rack and headed out the door, slamming it behind him.

Slumping against the front door after her friend had left, Monica drew in shuddering breaths as small sobs escaped her; she closed her eyes briefly, but opened them again as she heard Kevin's footsteps sounding from in front of her. Looking up, the Irish angel met Kevin's startled brown eyes and before she could speak, the youngest Caseworker spoke up,

"Why are you telling him to lay off when you know he's right, Monica?"

Falling silent for a moment as she felt the anger draining from her, she shook her head sadly,

"I don't know, Kevin. I know he's right; he generally is," Wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand, she drew in a shuddering breath,

"I need to go and find him. I can't leave it like this…"

"What are you going to do about the Sullivan's?" He prodded gently as he reached for her jacket and handed it to her.

"I don't know," She whispered sadly,

"I'll figure that out when I talk to Andrew."

Not far from the cabin, Andrew took a seat on a flat rock over-looking a stream of water. Wrapping his arms around his legs, the angel rested his chin on them and tried to take as deep of breaths as possible after what had just occurred with Monica back at the cabin. Yes, he was still angry with more; more angry then he had been in a while, and he knew that if he didn't get away from her, he would say something he would regret forever and he didn't want to go there.

Sighing sadly, Andrew kept his eyes on the water as he thought back to the words his best friend had said, and he couldn't believe that she would actually refuse this assignment after all that had happened. Although he didn't want to tell her a few minutes ago, after Monica had yelled that she was being pulled in many different directions, Andrew himself felt like he needed to be in too many places at the same time. Especially the last two months. And to hear her say such things caused him to grow even angrier and the angel couldn't keep his temper in check much longer.

"There you are..." The familiar Irish voice sounded from behind him, but Andrew didn't look up. Instead, his face flushed red with frustration all over again and he fell silent.

Seeing the anger still present on his face, Monica drew in a deep breath, knowing she had to make this right and preferably without a repeat of what had just happened at the cabin,

"I…I know you are furious with me at the moment and I'm sorry. I don't know where all that came from. No, you aren't the enemy and I was treating you like one and that wasn't fair of me…."

Getting no response from him, she sat down tentatively next to him, but careful to leave room between them, as she felt unable to read the look on his face,

"Go ahead and say what you are thinking," She stated softly.

Still not facing her, Andrew attempted to find his voice and when he did, he tried to keep it as steady as possible, despite the anger he was feeling,

"You're right. I am really angry right now, and you know why." Shooting a quick glance at her, the older angel then turned back to the water,

"After all that we've been through...not only the last few months, but also these last few years...I do not understand how you could say the things you did back there, Monica." Here, he turned and faced the younger angel, shaking his head in frustration and disappointment,

"How long have we known the Sullivan's? At least 50 years?" Seeing her nod her head, Andrew continued sternly,

"To hear you say you're going to walk off of this assignment leaves me more then disappointed, Monica! I was hoping that you would make the right choice, although of course the Father gives us all choices; but I didn't expect you to say those things..."

"I know there's more you want to say. Right?" The Irish angel lowered her head in shame as she waited for him to continue.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact, there is," Andrew replied, his voice laden with disappointment in her,

"One minute you're upset over the mistakes you made over the last few weeks and now today you don't even bother to think twice about making another one. You say you're going to work on your temper and today you don't think twice about losing it with me. Make up your mind, Monica. You're either working on these things or you aren't…there isn't any middle ground here," Knowing his words were hurting her, but also that they needed to be said, he continued sternly,

"And don't talk to me about being pulled in different directions, when I've been in a tug of war through this whole thing with you. Every time you've lost control, it resulted in my feeling like I needed to be two places at once, whether it be with you and with the Sullivan's or with you and with Kevin when he stayed at the train yard after you ticked off Thorn so badly, it was no longer safe for you to stay there. I know we've been over these things and they are forgiven, but on the same token, don't go telling me how you feel pulled in different directions when you've been the one doing the pulling."

Still staring down at the ground, her lower lip trembling, Monica could only whisper up a soft and miserable,

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

"Deep down, I know that you're sorry about it, Monica," Andrew replied, his voice still stern,

"And I will forgive you for it...but do something about this, Monica! You have got to..."

"Or you may never trust me again..." The Irish angel whispered tearfully, hoping that wouldn't be the case.

Shrugging his shoulders, Andrew glanced at her briefly before looking up at the sky,

"I don't want to think about never trusting you again, Mon'...I never want to see that happen..." Lowering his green eyes, the angel blinked back a few tears as he continued,

"But it could, though...and Father forgive me if it does ever occur, because you're my best friend in the entire angelic realm, Monica, mistakes and all."

Tears of shame racing down her face, Monica managed to finally speak softly to him even as she kept her head lowered, feeling unable to face him at the moment,

"Thank you for being so honest. Even though it hurt, the truth usually does and I needed to hear it. You're right, of course, about everything. I just didn't see it before now. I never meant to make it so hard for you on this assignment, but I think deep down inside, I knew I was. I'm sorry for only thinking about how I felt and not how you felt and that isn't the way a friend should act. I'm not going to make excuses as to why I said and did the things I did as you've heard enough of those," Trying to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat, she struggled to continue,

"I never want to lose your trust and the possibility of that ever happening breaks my heart, Andrew, but I know if I ever did, I would only have myself to blame. I'll work on my temper, I promise I will…and I won't walk away from this assignment. I think I'm just afraid of facing Brady and equally afraid of losing my temper with him, but I'll do my best not to…I'll do my best to make you proud of me again, no matter what…"

"I would like that a whole lot, Mon," Andrew nodded his head as he attempted a small smile for both of their sakes,

"I would."

Not really sure of what else to say, Monica watched as a few tears escaped her best friend's eyes and her heart broke once more. Reaching trembling arms out, the little Irish angel almost hesitantly wrapped them around his shoulders as she whispered again,

"I really am so, terribly sorry, Andrew..."

Gently embracing his friend back, Andrew nodded his head against her shoulder before he slowly pulled away for a moment to look into her face,

"I need a 'cross your heart' promise on what you just said, though, Monica. Everything that you just told me, I need for you to cross your heart...are we on the same page, Angel Girl?"

Nodding her head miserably, Monica bit her lip and replied shakily,

"Cross my heart."

"Thank you," Andrew replied softly, reaching to gently swipe a tear from her cheek, before he took her hands into his own and squeezed them reassuringly,

"You know I love you and that I wouldn't ask these things of you if they weren't important."

"I know," She whispered tearfully, holding his hands as tightly as she could,

"And I love you too, more than I think you know sometimes and I'd do anything to keep from losing you or your trust, Andrew…but…"

"But what?" He asked softly, looking into her eyes.

"But I might not be able to change some of these things today…I mean, I cross my heart promise that I'm going to try, but…I might need some help sometimes…would that still be okay?"

A smile playing on his lips, he cupped her cheek in his hand,

"Yeah, little girl, that would be more than 'okay'." His heart bursting with love for her, he pulled her back into his arms and hugged her tightly.

"Are…are we okay?" Monica whispered shakily, holding him tightly.

"We're going to be, Angel Girl," Andrew smiled, resting his chin on the top of her head,

"I think we're going to be just fine."

Early the next morning, Andrew walked up the steps of the Richard's household where Wendy was currently staying at and with a deep breath, rang the doorbell. Kevin and Monica were still waiting in the car while their supervisor talked to the teenager and told her that they were assigned to her family once again. Glancing over his shoulder at his two charges, he smiled slightly at them before turning back around to the sound of the front door opening, and Anna Richards poked her head out.

"Hello, Mrs. Richards. Is Wendy available?" Andrew asked kindly, knowing that this woman probably didn't even recognize him as he only caught a glimpse of her at Paddy's funeral.

"Why yes, she is. Are you one of the friends she was telling us about?" Anna asked gently as she opened the door and invited Andrew inside much to his dismay.

"Must be," The angel grinned at the woman,

"Things have just been so hectic in her household, and I need to talk to her if it's all right..."

"She's up in the guest room...I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name," The human gently responded.

"Andrew." He replied and a few moments later, Andrew was knocking softly on Wendy's bedroom door, and after he received the call to come in, the blonde angel gently opened it up, spotting her sitting on the windowsill, her blue eyes overlooking the backyard.

"Hey, sweetheart," Andrew greeted her carefully, taking a step into the room.

With a gasp, the teenage girl whirled around, her eyes instantly clouding with tears,  
"Andrew?" Bolting up from the windowsill, she hurled herself into the angel's arms, holding onto him tightly,  
"I can't believe you're here! I've missed you so much…and Andrew…things are so much worse.."

Rocking her gently in his arms, he nodded his head,  
"I know, Wendy, which is why we've been reassigned to your family."

"What?" Pulling away slightly, she looked up into his eyes,  
"The three of you have been reassigned to us? All three of you?"

"Yes, honey. Monica and Kevin are waiting for me in the car to head to your folks house," Leading her over to the bed, he sat her down and then sat down beside of her,  
"What I need from you, is for you to come home. We need you all there for things eventually get worked out," Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he looked into her tearful eyes,  
"Sweetie, will you please come home tonight?"

Though she looked undecided for a moment, she finally bravely nodded her head,  
"As long as you promise you three are going to be there and you're not going to let dad chase you away."

"God has placed us there, Wendy, and no, not even your dad will be able to chase us away. I'm not promising you that this is going to be easy, but I will promise you that we are going to be there and that God is going to be there for all of us."

The tears falling freely from the teenager's blue eyes, Wendy choked on a sob as she threw her arms around her angelic friend once again and held onto him tightly,

"I've missed you so much, Andrew...just so much..."

Smiling tearfully, Andrew returned the hug and ran his hand through her blonde hair,

"And I've missed you too...we've missed all of you, sweetie."

Still refusing to let him go, Wendy rested her head wearily on his shoulder as her friend rocked her gently in his arms,

"I love you, Andrew; I love you so, so much..." The teenager and the angel continued sitting on the bed for the next few moments and finally, Wendy felt him gently release her and look into her teary blue eyes.

"Would you like for me to wait out in the car while you get packed? Or do you need any help?" Andrew asked her gently as he lifted a hand and wiped at the tear streaks on her cheeks.

"I'll be out in a few minutes; I need to let Anna and Mike know, and say good-bye to Amy. You go on ahead," She replied with a tiny smile as they rose to their feet, but before her friend could leave the room to head back downstairs, Wendy caught him by the arm and looked up into his green eyes,

"Andrew?" Taking a deep breath and letting it out, she said quietly, her voice laced with more tears,

"Thank you..."

_Written by: CI and KP_

"I can't believe you all are here," Cindy uttered once more, as tears fell from her eyes.

"The Father sent us, not that we would have been anywhere else," Andrew replied, as Cindy pulled away from him and turned to Monica.

Hugging her angelic sister tightly, Cindy drew in a trembling breath,  
"I've missed you all so much….and things are such a mess right now…"

"We've missed you too," Monica whispered shakily, trying to ward off the anxiety she felt about being here. Though she had missed Cindy and the girls, the thought of confronting Brady and at the same time, keeping her promise to Andrew, made her feel sick inside. Though she and Andrew had been more or less okay since their discussion yesterday, there was still some residual tension in the air which had been slowly starting to fade, and she knew she couldn't blow this.

"And we're going to work on fixing this mess," Kevin piped up,  
"It may not happen overnight but we'll do our best."

"It definitely won't happen overnight," Cindy whispered wearily, pulling away from Monica and taking a seat at the table,  
"Not with as hateful as Brady has been."

Not missing the shudder that went through his best friend, Andrew reached for Cindy's hand,  
"We know about the pregnancy, Cin'," He told her gently.

"I haven't even told Brady about it," She remarked, wiping at her eyes,  
"And since he has been sleeping on the couch, he has missed the morning sickness I'm already having that I never had with the triplets," She sighed tearfully,  
"I have a feeling this is going to be a rough pregnancy and I don't even know if I'm going to have him with me through it all."

"Is he at work?" Monica asked quietly.

"No, he hasn't gone back since Paddy died…neither of us have yet," Cindy explained shakily,  
"He hides in his study most of the day and if I even so much as walk in there to try to talk to him it results in an argument…"

Pushing back her chair, Monica rose to her feet. Though she wanted to see Angel, she didn't want Brady to stumble upon them being here as she would rather face him on her terms and not his,  
"I'm going to let him know we're here," She stated, her voice as controlled as she could possibly make it.

Feeling Cindy squeeze his hand tightly, Andrew glanced at his friend and smiled reassuringly at her as he placed his right hand over their conjoined ones and gave it a squeeze in return. With a heavy sigh, the older angel turned his green eyes to the staircase and watched his best friend walk up them and he lifted up a silent prayer that she would be able to keep her temper in check with Brady as she talked with him.

On Monica's part, she took a deep breath as she finally neared the closed door of Brady and Cindy's study and it took all of her strength to even lift her hand and knock softly on the door. After several moments, she realized Brady must not have heard her, so she lifted her hand again and rapped louder on the wooden door.

"Come in." The human's voice sounded from the other side, and the little Irish angel didn't miss the irritation evident in his voice. Closing her brown eyes and lifting up a prayer of strength, Monica pushed the door open and poked her head in. Noticing that he was sitting at his desk, his eyes turned away from the door, Monica took a deep breath and walked slowly and hesitantly into the room.

"Hello, Brady..." She greeted him in a quiet whisper.

As Brady looked up, his eyes darkened at the sight of the angel as his face immediately flushed red with anger,

"What the hell are you doing in my house?" He demanded, rising to his feet and moving to stand in front of the desk,

"I thought I made myself perfectly clear that none of you are welcomed here anymore, so what part of that did you not understand?"

Trying not to flinch, Monica responded as calmly as she could,

"We've been assigned here, Brady. It's really no secret that your family is in trouble and we've been asked to intervene-."

"Well, thanks, but no thanks, so you and your angelic friends can see yourselves to the door! You got that?" Brady snapped, taking a threatening step closer to her.

"I'm afraid that isn't possible, Brady," She replied, refusing to be intimidated by him,

"God has placed us here, whether you like it or not. I understand that you are angry, but Andrew, Kevin and I did all we could to help Patrick…he just didn't want to listen-."

"I'm not so sure you three could help anyone!" Brady exploded, his anger now unleashing at the ones he had been most angry with,

"You say you 'helped' him? Tell me, is this similar to the way you all helped Cindy's twin sister the night she died?"

Forcing back a snappish remark at the human, Monica clenched and unclenched her fists before replying calmly,

"What happened with Wendy was the same thing that happened with Patrick, Brady, and Cindy has told you that. Andrew and I tried to get through to young Wendy, but she was so drunk that she decided to not listen to us...she disobeyed your in-laws and there was not a thing we could have done-"

"She was RAPED, for God's sakes, just like Angelica was! But none of you stopped that either, so don't tell me that you 'helped'!" Brady thundered, taking another step closer to the Irish angel,

"Now get out of my study, out of my house and get out of my life! Do you understand, Monica?!"

"She said that she couldn't, dad," Wendy's voice appeared in the doorway and Brady whirled around and saw both of his daughters standing in the doorway. Andrew was in between them, an arm wrapped around each girl's shoulders and he looked as freaked out as Monica did at the moment, although he was trying to keep his cool as well over the things he was saying. Before Brady had time to reply, Wendy continued,

"None of the angels can 'get out of your house', like you put it...they're assigned here to help us, and that's what they've been trying to do since day one..."

Looking angrily from Andrew to Monica, Brady spoke up again his voice controlled,

"Wendy, Angelica, go to your rooms."

"Dad, you're not being fair!" Wendy replied angrily.

"NOW!" Brady barked, pointing to the door.

Drawing in a deep breath, Andrew looked down at the two teenagers,

"It's okay, you guys. Do what your dad says. We'll be in to talk to you in awhile."

"You're not leaving, are you?" Wendy pleaded, exchanging a look with Angel, who was on the verge of tears.

"No," Andrew replied calmly, as he gently turned and guided the girls out of the line of fire, before turning back around to face the situation in front of him.

Monica fought the urge to flee the room as well, though there was nothing she would have liked more. She was already feeling overwhelmed, both with Brady's anger and the lingering conversation between she and Andrew yesterday still all too fresh in her mind. She felt terrified of saying the wrong thing, but she also knew Brady was her assignment and she had to say something,

"You can't just make them disappear, Brady, when their opinion differs from yours. They are a part of this family as well and have a right to express what they are feeling."

"But this is MY house and what I say goes!" Brady roared, glaring at each of the angels as Andrew walked up behind the Irish angel and placed comforting hands on her shoulders,

"And I may not be able to make my daughters disappear, and I can surely make you two-or three-disappear-"

"Actually, you can't, Brady," Andrew interrupted, his voice cold, though in control,

"I think you've forgotten that we're angels sometimes...we're not human; we're sent from God Himself, and He WANTS us here, whether you do or don't..."

"You know, you may be angels, but you sure don't act like them!" The human snapped back, glaring angrily at his former friends,

"You practically killed my only son, and now you won't leave! You three are murderers, and I want you out of my home, out of my life, and away from my wife and daughters! I don't care what you have to say any longer!"

"Brady, if you would just calm down and listen to what happened out there, you'd better understand…" Andrew began, but was immediately cut off.

"I have no desire to hear anything you have to say, Andrew! You're a supervising angel and you and your charges were assigned to my son and now he is dead, end of story! You've all caused more trouble than you could possibly ever be worth and I can't figure out why God, if there even is one, would allow murderers to be reassigned to their victims families!" Brady raged, his anger out of control,

"You helped kill Cindy's sister, and that girl in the park…what was her name? Rachel? Just stood by and watched her die too, just like Patrick!"

"We did not stand by and watch him die, Brady!" Andrew raised his voice slightly, although he still kept under control, although he was starting to feel rather angry as well towards the human who used to be his friend,

"Monica and I tried and tried again to talk him out of doing it, but he pulled a knife on us, Brady! What were we supposed to do then?"

"I'll tell you what you could've done! You could've grabbed it!" Brady snapped back, glaring angrily at the two angels.

"You weren't there, Brady; you didn't see what was going on!" Monica jumped back on, determined to not let her best friend take all the rap for this,

"We had no idea that Paddy had found out who we were really until he was too late-"

"Look, I don't want to hear anything else, have you two got that?!" Brady thundered back, taking another threatening step closer to the two angels,

"Now get out of my study or I'll personally escort you out!"

As Andrew turned around, Monica in front of him, he suddenly felt himself shoved from behind. Stumbling and catching himself, his jaw tense with anger, he heard Brady say,

"I want you both out of this house now!"

"You're way out of line, Brady!" Monica seethed, no longer able to control her anger after the physical attack on her best friend. Though she knew she was risking much more than she wanted to right now, she had been holding her tongue for as long as she could,

"You're so intent on only seeing what you want to see that you've become blind to everything else that is going on around you! Did it ever once occur to you that we loved Paddy too? No, of course it didn't, because all you see is that we were unable to help him! Well, you didn't help him either and you know why? Because Paddy had free will and he abused it in a terrible, heartbreaking way, for all of us and that's the truth! Now, you could either see this and move on with your life with your family, or you can continue to harbor this self righteous anger of yours that is putting a wall between you and your family, but if you do that you will lose more than a son; you will lose everything!" Trembling, even as she wondered if she too, were about to lose so much of what was important to her, Monica's eyes met Brady's steadily,

"Now, I'm not about to explain to you about Cindy's sister or about Rachel as neither of them concern you; you weren't around for either of them, but I will say that if love could have kept them alive, they would still be here; just like Paddy, but it wasn't to be, so just accept that!"

"Get out." Brady stated, his voice dangerously low, but before he could say anymore, Cindy's voice interrupted him.

"No, Brady, you get out." Cindy stated calmly, though her eyes were tear-filled as they met with his,

"I was going to take the girls and go, but no. We're not the ones destroying this family, you are. So I want you to pack your things and get out. If and when you are ready to act like the man I married, you can call me, but not a moment before."

Silence fell upon the room for a moment, before Brady grabbed his briefcase from the desk,

"Fine." He stated angrily, as he brushed past all of them and left the room.

Her heart pounding loudly in her chest, Monica closed her eyes for a moment. She at least knew she had spoken the truth, even if it was in anger and what frightened her most is that despite everything, she wasn't sorry. Turning around, she headed out of the study, not daring to look at Andrew, afraid of what she would see there.

"Monica?" Kevin asked in alarm as she came down the steps and he saw how her face was flushed.

"Brady's leaving," She stated, her voice controlled,

"Cindy has asked him to go."

"What happened up there?" He asked, having heard the loud voices for the last several minutes. Watching his friend as she made her way to the back door, he repeated,

"Monica?"

"Plenty happened, Kev'," She replied, her voice still holding a tinge of anger, as she opened the back door,

"And I may have just lost one of the most important things in the world to me, and I'm ashamed to say that I'm not even sure Brady was worth losing it for." Without another word, she closed the back door firmly behind her.

His brown eyes widening in absolute shock, Kevin drew in a shaky breath and headed quickly to the stairs, but not before he heard thunderous footsteps sounding from above. The next thing he knew, Brady had come racing down the stairs, shoving the young angel out of the way,

"Get out of my way!"

"Brady-" Kevin started, but the human interrupted angrily.

"The next time I come here, you all had better be out of my house and out of our existence!" Brady pointed an angry finger at the youngest angel, all the while glaring at him,

"Or you will be sorry..." With that, Brady turned on his heel, a suitcase and his briefcase in each hand, and stomped out the door, slamming it behind him with his foot. The next thing he heard was the sound of the car starting up and roaring out of the driveway.

Unable to just stand there any longer, Kevin raced up the stairs, soon finding Cindy and the twins in the study, and Andrew was seated on the desk, his head in his hands,

"What in the world just happened in here...? Did I just hear what I think I heard?"

"He's gone for now," Cindy stated firmly, ignoring the tears that were racing down her face,

"I've had all I can take, Kevin."

Shooting a worried look at his supervisor, Kevin struggled to find words,

"It's going to be a little tough to fix a family with one member missing though, isn't it?"

"He doesn't want to fix anything!" Wendy cried out, her blue eyes showing anger,

"He'd rather yell than listen to anything anyone has to say. All he sees is how he feels!"

"Well, he obviously wasn't happy with us being here," Kevin remarked tentatively,

"He pretty much said as much to me on his way out the door. I tried to stop him but he wasn't listening…" He glanced over at Angel who looked as if she was going to burst into tears at any given moment.

Cindy looked over at Andrew, who had not uttered a sound and she approached him,

"It's better this way for right now, Andrew. He was making this house unlivable, with or without all of you here."

"This whole thing is just a nightmare..." The older angel whispered as he lifted his head and looked up at his human friend,

"A living nightmare that doesn't seem to have an end in sight."

Wrapping an arm around the angel's shoulders, Cindy gave him a squeeze as she closed her blue eyes tightly,

"Well, he's out of the house now; and maybe...just maybe...he'll also have some time to think about all that he's done the last few days. Because if he doesn't...to tell you the truth, divorce is definitely on the "maybe" list right about now..."

Silence filled the room and the only sound that was heard was that of Angel sobbing brokenly in her sister's arms. Finally, Kevin broke the tense silence, his voice filled with shock,

"You two can't get a divorce, Cindy..."

"I don't want to do it, Kevin, believe me," Cindy choked out through her own tears,

"But if Brady doesn't change, I am not going to live with him any longer. He's being a royal jerk, who doesn't care about anyone except for himself."

"That's just it, Cindy," Andrew replied wearily,

"I think his grief is just coming out in anger…I think he really does care, he is just incapable of showing it right now. Don't go and do anything rash just yet, okay?"

"The ball is in his court, Andrew," She replied softly, looking over at her two daughters, her heart filling with sympathy as she saw Angel's tears,

"C'mon, you two, lets go in the other room and have a talk, okay?"

"I don't want you guys to get a divorce…" Angel sobbed in misery, feeling as if her whole world was falling apart.

"I know, sweetheart, and hopefully that won't happen, but on the same token we can't keep living like this," Cindy replied with a sad sigh.

As the three humans headed out of the study and towards the twin's bedroom, Cindy stuck her head back in and said quietly to her remaining two angelic friends,

"If you need anything, just hollar." As they nodded their heads, the trio disappeared behind the bedroom door, closing it behind them tightly.

"Where'd Monica disappear to?" Andrew finally asked, rising to his feet and looking out into the hallway, but not seeing her anywhere.

"I think she went outside, Andrew," The youngest angel replied quietly, his concerned eyes on his supervisor,

"Are you all right?"

"I don't know if I'll ever be 'all right' again, Kev, if everything keeps going like it is..." He replied, his voice thick with emotion,

"But I need to go and check to see if Mon is at least holding her own...that was an ugly scene that went on in here with Brady..."

"Sure sounded that way," Kevin replied, his eyes holding sorrow over Andrew's words,

"Don't lose faith in this, Simba," He stated gently,

"What's that human saying? 'It's always darkest before the dawn'? If that be the case, the sun should be rising soon."

"I hope so, Kev," He replied as he headed out the door,

"I really hope so."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Monica sat on the patio chair with her knees drawn up to her chin as she shivered slightly in the fall breeze. Her anger was beginning to wear off, but she was trying to hold onto it for fear of what else she would feel once the anger at Brady was gone.

She had no idea if she had crossed any lines with Andrew or not, she only knew she had been unable to remain calm any longer. She had tried, really tried to not let her temper take over, even at all the ugly things Brady had said, but when he had pushed Andrew, she had snapped. She still didn't feel sorry in the least, nor would she apologize; Brady Sullivan had been way out of line and he had needed to be told that was the case.

Hearing a door, she looked up, her eyes widening in surprise as she saw Andrew, before she gazed down once more. She could tell he was upset, she just didn't know if it was at the situation, at her, or both and she decided to remain quiet until she knew.

Noticing that she wasn't about to say anything, Andrew sighed deeply before taking a seat in the patio chair next to his best friend and bringing it as close to hers as he could get,

"Before you ask, I'm not upset with you, Monica...I can tell by the look on your face that you're thinking just that, Angel Girl."

"I tried to hold it in," She spoke for the first time, her eyes looking out at the pool,

"I tried so hard...but when he pushed you..." With a shake of her head, she felt the anger returning to her and she cringed slightly,

"That was the last straw. He had it coming for him..."

Silence passed between them for a few moments before Andrew laid a hand on her knee and whispered,

"He was getting out of line, that's right, Mon." He sighed heavily before he continued,

"I'm proud of you, though, Angel Girl. Although he said some very hurtful things, you held your temper as long as you could and I'm more then proud of you for that."

She closed her eyes for a moment as relief flowed through her, as she almost wanted to break down at his words. Reaching for his hand that was on her knee, she held it tightly in her own as she drew in a deep breath,

"Andrew, I…"

"What is it, Mon?" He asked gently, seeing the troubled look in her eyes.

Moving her other hand to hold his in both of hers, she began quietly,

"I keep thinking about yesterday and that conversation we had by the stream and…the whole time I was up there with Brady, I was just afraid. Afraid of saying something wrong or of getting angry and I felt so overwhelmed…I just don't want to…I'm afraid I'll say or do something to cause you not to trust me," She finally stated, looking up into his eyes.

His face flushing slightly at the reminder of his words the previous day, when he had told his best friend that it was a real possibility that he could lose his trust in her someday if she didn't control her temper like she said she would, Andrew gave her hand a tight squeeze before he replied quietly,

"But you're trying really hard, little girl. I could see it plainly up there just a few minutes ago. But also remember what I told you yesterday: This doesn't have to happen overnight, Monica; you said so yourself that it wouldn't, and if you make a mistake and lose your temper for a moment, that's okay. You're giving this your all and that's all I care about."

Lowering her head, Monica tightened her hold on his hand before she brought it up to her cheek and kissed it,

"I'm sorry he pushed you, though...he-he was so out of line, Andy...just so out of line...Nobody has any right to do the kind of stuff he's been doing lately." Looking into his own sad green eyes, the younger angel whispered,

"And I hate to say that I don't regret saying what I did to him...I don't; but I have to admit, that I'm even starting to grow frightened of Brady Sullivan. He's...he's not the Brady we used to love, and I don't think I'll ever love him again, not like I used to."

"Don't say that, sweetie," He told her gently,

"The Brady we know and love is still under there, I'm sure of it. As far as what you said to him, it was all truth, Monica, so you have no need to feel sorry and maybe something you said will make him think a little bit."

Looking up at him once more, the little Irish angel rose to her feet and wrapped her arms around him tightly as she kissed his cheek,

"I can tell you're down about this whole thing, Andrew, and I just want to remind you of how wonderful you are. No matter how bad things get, you still find the good in the situation and I love that about you. Mostly, thank you for being so patient with me. I know how trying I can be, but you make me want to be better and that's to your credit, Andrew."

Sighing softly, Andrew wrapped his arms around his friend in return and rested his cheek against her hair,

"I needed to hear that, sweet girl..."

Silence passed between the two angels for a few moments as Monica continued to hold tightly to her dearest friend. Resting her head against his shoulder, she then whispered reassuringly to him,

"I'll always be here for you too...just like how you're continuously with me; I know that you need a friend as well, so if you need a shoulder or anything..."

"I know, Mon," Andrew replied with a heavy sigh as he only tightened his hold around her,

"Thank you..."

"There's no need to thank me, my friend," Monica whispered, running her fingers through his blond locks lovingly,  
"That's just the way things are," Pulling away, and still seeing sadness in his emerald eyes, she took his hand in her own,  
"C'mon, lets go for a walk."

Andrew looked hesitant for a moment,  
"We should probably get back inside, Angel Girl. Cindy might need us and you haven't even been able to talk to Angel yet…"

"You know what? All the problems waiting for us inside there will still be waiting for us in an hour," She told him gently,  
"Right now, you need to step away for a bit. If you feel that strongly about it, go and clear your head and I'll stay. The important thing to me right now is that you take a little time, Andrew."

Squeezing her hand gently, he managed a smile,  
"No, you're right. Everything will still be here when we get back and there is nothing I'd like more right now than a walk with my Angel Girl."

Despite the situation, she managed a grin up at him,  
"And I promise it will be stress free."

Raising his eyebrow playfully at her, thinking about how good this brief banter between them felt, he replied teasingly,  
"With you? Now that would be a switch," Winking at her, he caught her around the neck with the crook of his arm and pulled her closer as they headed out the gate and he decided to make the most of this gift of an hour before they had to return and face the pain of this assignment.

Cindy took a seat in the chair across from her daughter's bed and drew in a deep breath as she faced Wendy and Angel, who also took a seat across from her. As they sat side by side, the human looked down at her hands before looking up at each of the girls,

"Wendy, Angel...there's some things we need to talk about, and I think you know that..."

"You and dad can't divorce, mom!" Angel cried out as tears escaped her eyes once more,

"N-Not now!"

Reaching out and grasping onto her youngest triplet's hand, Cindy sighed wearily as she squeezed it tightly,

"Baby, we're going to have to wait and see what happens. Right now, your father's attitude has been totally uncalled for, and I'm not about to have him in the same house with us until he decides to have an attitude check and is back to the man I married. But I'm not giving up on him just yet, Angel, all right? I'm just saying that a divorce is on my "maybe" list at the moment..."

"What do you want to tell us, mom?" Wendy whispered miserably as she kept her head lowered to her hands.

Sighing heavily, Cindy reached for Wendy's hand as well and held it tightly in her own before attempting to find her voice once again,

"Girls...I haven't told your father this; but I know that I should at least tell you. I'm pregnant again; I just found out a few days ago."

"That's just great!" Angel burst out, her expression anything but happy,

"Why is it that when our family is falling apart, you decide to have more of us?"

"Angelica, this wasn't planned and I was as surprised as you are-." Cindy explained tiredly.

"So how on earth are we going to do this without daddy?" She cried out, sobs tearing through her.

"We'll do just fine." Wendy replied, a hint of anger still in her voice,

"We've been without him for a week and if need be, we can continue to be without him."

"What do you know, Wendy?!" Angel cried out, jumping to her feet, her eyes tear-filled and angry,

"YOU haven't even been here! We haven't been 'fine'! I haven't been 'fine'! Nobody in this family is even trying to keep it together! At the first sign of trouble, you just leave! In the same week, I lost my brother, my dad and my sister and do you know how that feels?! I have a baby growing inside of me too and no one has even mentioned that or asked me how I feel!" Looking at her mother as sobs continued to wrack through her, she continued,

"You and dad have done nothing but fight and Wendy, you leave…where did that leave me? I'll tell you where! Alone! Just like always! I know it must be a terrible embarrassment to you that I'm pregnant and I'm sorry for that! But it doesn't change the fact that I'm scared or the fact that everyone has been so busy fighting or running away to even care! I don't know what your definition of 'fine' is, Wendy, but that certainly isn't mine!"

"Angel, I'm not embarrassed by you because you're pregnant-" Wendy started, but her sister interrupted in anger.

"Yes, you are, Wendy, and don't try to deny it!" The teenager harshly said, looking from Cindy to her twin and back again,

"Now if you'll excuse me, but I'm going to be ALONE for a while, which is nothing new, as I've been ALONE for a long time now!" In a huff, she turned on her heel and started to bolt out the bedroom door, but nearly collided with Andrew and Monica, who were just coming up the stairs.

"Whoa, Angel," Andrew gently grasped her by the shoulders and looked into her furious blue eyes,

"Sweetheart, are you okay?"

"Just peachy," The teenager replied back sarcastically as she tried to move past the two angels, but Andrew continued to stand in her way.

"Honey, why don't you, Monica and I have a little talk downstairs?" The handsome, blonde angel gently offered, wrapping an arm around her trembling shoulders,

"I don't think you should be alone right now..." Almost expecting her to object and pull away, Andrew was surprised and relieved when she didn't. Glancing over at his best friend and seeing her take Angel's other hand in her own, the trio made their way downstairs and into the living room.

As they sat down on the couch with Angelica between them, Andrew kept his arm around her trembling shoulders as she continued to cry as Monica reached for her hand,

"Angel?" She began softly,

"What happened, sweetie?"

"I…I may as well be invisible," Angel sobbed brokenly,

"I feel that way all the time; at school, at home….first sign of trouble here and Wendy runs off to Amy's house and all mom and dad do is fight, and now she's talking about getting a divorce…not even you guys were here till today, except for the funeral…." She turned eyes filled with hurt to Monica,

"You didn't even come…why didn't you come? I begged daddy to let you guys be there…"

Seeing the deep guilt in Monica's eyes, Andrew spoke up softly,

"Honey, Monica was trying to work some things out for herself that day, about Paddy. We all were, but sometimes-."

"Sometimes," Monica interrupted him gently, her thoughts going back once again to the talk by the stream yesterday,

"We get so caught up in how we feel, we forget how badly others that we love are hurting too. It happens to angels too; it happened to me. I should have been there, Angel and I'm sorry that I wasn't. I've been selfish a lot lately, I'm afraid and have hurt some friends that I wish I hadn't," Her dark eyes met Andrew's briefly over top of Angel's head,

"And I think maybe that is the same thing that is happening here, Angel. It's all too easy to get caught up in how you feel; not you exactly but maybe your mom and Wendy. They don't mean to hurt you, sweetheart, and like me, they may not have even realized they did until you pointed it out."

"But were you so upset with dad that you just didn't want to face him?" Angel uttered miserably as she held the angel's gaze,

"That really hurt, Monica! Andrew, Kevin, Rose and Tess showed up, but when you didn't...I felt more alone then ever!"

"I'm sorry, Angel...I really am..." Monica whispered as tears threatened her brown eyes once more,

"Will you please forgive me for being selfish and not even thinking of your feelings?"

Silence passed between the two angels and one teenager before Angel slowly pulled her hand away from the Irish angel's grasp and looked down at her feet,

"I'm going to have to think about it...I'm not happy with hardly anyone at the moment, especially mom and Wendy, and..." She shook her head sadly as she rose to her feet, her eyes still on Monica,

"And I'm just going to have to think about it. Excuse me." With that, the girl turned around and headed toward the front door, her sobs heard plainly as she closed it behind her.

Andrew watched sadly as Monica lowered her head to hide tears as he moved closer to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, hearing a sob escape her as he did so,

"Hey, c'mon now. You know she's just upset, sweetie. She feels like her whole world is falling apart right now and she's lashing out at anyone she can."

Resting her head in her hands, Monica tried to find her voice,

"What am I doing here, Andrew? So far, I've been completely ineffective to help anyone…"

"You helped me outside a little while ago, little one," He whispered reassuringly to her, knowing that wasn't going to help her much.

"But Brady and Angel…." She replied miserably,

"I don't know…maybe I'm as selfish as he is…"

"Now don't you even think that, Monica," Andrew firmly interrupted as he gently took her by the shoulders and turned her face him so that their eyes met,

"You are not selfish; not in the least, and deep down I think you know that, too. Who have you been thinking about through practically this entire disaster? The Sullivan's and your friends, and how you can help them. That's not selfish at all, Angel Girl..."

"But I never got a chance to say good-bye to Paddy at the funeral when I had the perfect chance; Angel begged Brady to let us come and I blew that chance, Andrew!" The Irish angel's shoulders slumped and she hung her head in misery,

"Now Brady and Angel hate me-"

"They don't 'hate' you, Mon!" Andrew interrupted, his hands never leaving her shoulders,

"They're upset and angry, but they don't hate any of us-"

"Oh yes, they do, Andrew," Monica interrupted this time as she lifted her eyes and looked into his concerned face,

"Everything that's happened these past few hours with Brady and Angelica...if that's not evidence that they now dispise me, then I don't know what is."

"Monica, you are so wrong about this," He pleaded with her.

"No, I don't think I am. You even said it yourself, Andrew….I lose control of my emotions and it results in a mess; with you, with Brady, with Angel, because I only think about how I feel. I wasn't thinking about how to help them…I was trying to refuse the assignment as of yesterday, once again, because of how I felt," She drew in a trembling breath as she looked away once more,

"I don't have any right trying to tell them how to solve their problems and Brady was partially right….he does need angels, but not this one…"

"Monica, you promised me that you would try-"

"I know, Andrew...and I did...but I c-can't," Guilt tearing through her like never before, Monica faced her best friend once again and bit back a cry at the disappointment and pain showing on his face about her broken promise,

"I'm so sorry..." Without any more words, the Irish angel rose to her feet and headed out the same door that Angel had just moments ago and slammed the door behind her.

"Monica..." Andrew didn't have it in him to raise his voice and as he rose to his feet, he looked out the window and saw that his best friend was already gone,

"Monica...why...?" He whispered in misery as he felt like he couldn't stand up any longer and his legs collapsed underneath him as he slumped back down on the couch.

"Andrew...what happened?" Kevin appeared in the doorway and his face was a mask of worry as he saw the tears on his friend's face, and the disappointment and pain in his eyes.

"She walked off the assignment, Kev..." Andrew whispered back, his voice filled with shock,

"Monica just walked off the assignment."

"She what?" Kevin cried out, horror etched on his face, afraid of what this would mean not only for the assignment, but for the friendship between the two angels.

"She walked off the assignment," Andrew repeated once more, trying to keep the many different emotions he was feeling under control,

"She broke a promise to me and just left."

Swallowing hard, Kevin tried to smooth things over, not sure if it would help or not,

"It's been a hard few months, Simba, for all of us. Maybe she just needs a little time.."

"She broke a 'cross my heart' promise, Kevin, and she-she even admitted it," Andrew choked out as he turned his eyes to his youngest charge, the look on his face one of total confusion and horror,

"She's gone, Kev...GONE."

His mouth still hanging open in complete shock, Kevin slowly made his way over to the couch and took a seat next to his friend, not really sure of what to say right now. A tense silence passed before the youngest angel whispered,

"Did she say where she was going...?"

"No...and right now, I'm too angry and confused to even go after her," Andrew shook his head slowly, as he couldn't believe what had just happened here.

His heart pounding loudly in his chest, Kevin could see the anger creeping into his supervisor's green eyes,

"I take it that a 'cross my heart' promise is a big deal?" He asked softly.

Rising to his feet and knowing he had to be alone for awhile, Andrew replied tensely, as he turned to leave the room,

"To break that promise breaks trust and that is exactly what just happened here."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Brady Sullivan threw his suitcase and briefcase down on the bed at the cheesy motel he had rented for the night and slammed the door shut behind him. He was beyond furious; he was angrier then he had ever been in his life. What right did Cindy have to kick him out of the house, especially after he had stated that the angels were no longer welcome in their existence? And what did Monica and Andrew think they were doing, showing up on their doorstep, telling them that they "couldn't leave"?

"I hope I never see them again," He growled angrily to himself as he sat down heavily in the chair that was leaned up against the wall,

"Cindy, they're going to be sorry if they're still here once I come home..."

As he spoke those words to himself, he remembered the other words his wife had spoken to him right after she had kicked him out of their house...telling him not to return home until he was back to the man she married. Who did she think she was, talking to him like that? He was trying to help them, for God's sakes, and here she was, throwing him out of the house when it was three angels that deserved it.

"Two of them will still be there, Brady, if and when you return."

The sound of Monica's voice caused him to whirl around to face her, his dark eyes narrowing at the sight of her,

"I thought I told you to stay out of my face, Monica?" He snapped at her.

Her emotions completely raw, she faced Brady angrily,

"I'm soon to be out of it, Brady, don't you worry about that, but not until you've heard a few things! Got it?" Seeing as he was getting ready to reply, she decided not to give him the chance just yet,

"First off, everything I said earlier was true. You are destroying your family and pretty soon you are going to be left standing with nothing! Your anger over losing your son is taking over your life and therefore is taking over the lives of your family, and they are all hurting right now, but you refuse to see that! Wendy went to stay with Amy because of the fact that all you did was fight with Cindy! Angel is pregnant and terrified and not getting the reassurance she needs because you and your wife are too caught up in trying to decide who is right and who is wrong! At this point, Brady, you haven't just lost a son; you've lost a wife and two daughters and if you would just quit being so stubborn you would see that!"

"Shut up," Brady hissed angrily, but Monica interrupted.

"I'm not finished, and I think you need to be quiet and listen once, because you're not going to get the last word this time," She snapped as she glared at him in hatred,

"Ever since your son died, you have done nothing-absolutely nothing-but place blame on those you supposedly love...and although we're no longer part of your family or your friends anymore, you mainly place blame on the angels who all along were trying to HELP you! Did we ever say that we didn't want to help you? I don't think so! We've been wanting to do that all along, but ever since the death of Paddy, you have done nothing but make this more then difficult! All of a sudden, it's become YOUR house, YOUR life, and YOUR choices! What happened to the Brady everyone used to love? Did he die along with Paddy?"

"You say you all wanted to help, Monica but my daughter winds up pregnant and my son is dead!" Brady all but yelled at her.

"Because people have free will, Brady! They always have and they always will and we cannot interfere with that! Free will is a gift from God and to ever take it away would be to take away the gift! Surely you can understand that! I have known Cindy's family for over 50 years, Brady and have loved every single member of that family and have even thought of them as my own! Do you think for one minute that Andrew or I would ever allow harm to come to any of you if we could help? Do you think for one minute that it didn't break our hearts when Cindy's sister died or when Paddy died? It did, Brady! It still hurts, the same way it is still hurting you, but we're not placing blame on anyone! It will hurt for the rest of your life, but it's your choice at to whether or not you have your family around to help each other through it!" Tears burned in her eyes as she met them with his,

"Your family is about to grow again, Brady. The question is are you going to be there to see it."

"What are you talking about?" Brady asked, his voice not as loud or as angry as before.

"Cindy's pregnant, but she hasn't told you because of the way things have been between you. God is good, Brady, even now. He knows your loss, but He still brings new life, into your world because He loves you!"

"Pregnant?" Brady gasped and his eyes never left Monica's as she angrily nodded her head.

"Yes, she's pregnant; she found out a few days ago, and she's not very happy about it because she wants her loving husband back," The Irish angel continued, now feeling like she was going to have a break down,

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to do what you asked of me to begin with." With that, she disappeared from the motel room in the blink of an eye, leaving Brady speechless for the first time in days.

As he slumped down on the bed once again, his face turned pale as he leaned his head in his hands,

"Oh my God...oh my God, what have I done? God, what have I done?"

Late that night, Andrew sat alone out by the pool, his thoughts a million miles away. Despite the cold November night, he felt too numb to be able to feel the chill, as his mind went over and over the things that had happened today. His anger had faded somewhat, leaving him feeling more hurt and disappointed by his best friend's actions, despite the fact that he was trying to make sense of them.

Ever since he had gotten his memory back all those years ago and had promised her he would never again walk out on her, there had been no broken promises between them. The "cross my heart" promises went back to the days when they had first become a part of the Hendrickson family, and for her to break one now, less than 24 hours after making it, when dealing with the newer generations of that family, left a bitter taste in his mouth. He knew that today had been hard, and yesterday as well with the tension there had been between them, but he still couldn't excuse the fact that she had broken her promise and walked out the door. Cindy and the girls had been devastated to hear the news and he had watched as Angel almost physically seemed to withdrawal further into herself when he had told her.

But putting aside all the reasons he needed her here for this family, what hurt the most is that right now he was feeling like he meant so little to her that she would do this without barely a second thought. Monica had taken a matter of about two minutes after talking to Angel to make this decision, unwilling to even try to fight to regain Angel's trust and apparently not really caring if she betrayed his. Deep down inside, he knew that she did care, as he had not missed the pain in her eyes before she had gone, but to not even bother to try to talk it out didn't sit well with him at all right now.

As the angel pulled his knees up to his chest and out of the water of the pool, Andrew rested his cheek on them just as he heard the sound of the patio door opening and he barely lifted his head as Cindy came outside and took a seat next to him. They both were silent for a few moments, before the human spoke up, her voice still tinged with complete sadness,

"You've been out here all evening. Are you going to come back inside?"

Shaking his head, Andrew finally spoke, his voice cool,

"Not yet."

Gently laying a hand on his arm as he turned his head away, the woman spoke in a sad whisper,

"I know how hurt you must feel after this afternoon, Andrew...I'm sad as well about what happened, but I can only imagine your feelings in all of this..."

"I just can't believe it happened at all," He replied softly,

"Of course, I'm having trouble believing a lot of things right now…"

Cindy was quiet for a moment, studying his face worriedly,

"Andrew, just be careful, okay?"

Turning his eyes to her, he replied softly,

"What are you talking about, Cin'?"

Looking down, she continued gently,

"It's very easy, as I have well found out, to let things get completely out of control, no matter how special your relationship is. Now, I may be the last person on the planet right now to be giving advice, but I've known you and Monica my whole life, Andrew and what you two have is beyond special…I think your relationship exceeds human understanding at times…all I'm asking is that you are careful and that you remember that."

"I will, Cindy," Andrew replied quickly and soon let out a heavy sigh,

"But I just don't understand...she made me promise all those years ago that I would never ever walk away again, and I kept that promise. I told her that was the last time I would ever do it, and it hasn't happenes since then, no matter how tempting it is." He lowered his blonde head to the pool as he continued speaking, his voice filled with emotion,

"And now she goes and breaks that promise to me, after she told me less then 24 hours ago that she would try." He shot a quick glance at his human friend,

"She's always going to be my best friend, Cindy; but how in the world am I going to regain my trust in her after she broke the one promise to me that we've promised each other never to break?"

"It may take some time, Andrew," She remarked quietly, wondering if she would get the same chance with Brady,

"I'm sure her intentions today were not to lose your trust, though she may have known it could happen. This whole thing has just been so overwhelming for all of us…" Hearing the sliding glass door open, Cindy drew in a sharp breath as she saw Brady standing there. Even from the distance between them, she could see sadness etched across his handsome face as their eyes met.

"Cindy…" He began softly, his voice thick with emotion as he lowered his eyes for a moment,

"Though you have every reason to say no, I was hoping maybe we could talk…"

"Talk or yell, Brady?" Andrew said tensely, unable to face one more thing going wrong today, as his eyes narrowed at the human.

But instead of snapping back, Brady met his eyes briefly with Andrew's as he replied,

"Talk. I promise both of you that. After being reminded of a few things, I know I've been a complete jerk and I owe a lot of apologies," Looking back to his wife, his dark eyes pleaded with her,

"I promise, baby…I just want to talk to you."

His green eyes narrowed, Andrew gave a quick glance over at Cindy, not sure if he should trust what Brady was saying or not. Before he could speak, however, he felt Cindy place a hand gently on his back and his friend looked into his eyes,

"It's all right, Andrew." She whispered, turning her own eyes hesitantly to her husband,

"Go on back inside; we'll be in in a few minutes."

Nodding his head slowly, the blonde angel rose shakily to his feet and as he passed Brady, Andrew shot the human a warning look before turning his back and disappearing through the sliding glass doors. Brady lowered his head in shame after the angel had gone back inside the house and although he wanted to just take his wife into his arms and hold her, he decided to just keep his distance for the time being,

"Cindy..."

"What do you want to talk about, Brady?" She also rose to her feet and headed over to one of the lawn chairs to take a seat,

"I hope that you're back to the person I married, because if not..."

Approaching her slowly, instead of taking the chair next to her, he knelt down in front of her and carefully took her hands in his own, grateful when she didn't pull away,

"I am so sorry," He whispered, tears already welling up in his eyes,

"And I know that doesn't even begin to cover the things I have said and done, but I have to start somewhere. I've said terrible things, to you, to the girls, and to the angels, and I regret all of it, Princess. Every last hateful word. When Paddy died, it felt as if something had died in me too and all I could feel was the anger over what happened. I hurt all of you and I want to make it up to all of you, given the chance," Tears now making their way down his face, he continued shakily,

"I want my family back, Cindy, but I'm not going to come in here and demand it, so I'm asking you…give me another chance? Please? I already know I'm going to spend the rest of my life making up for the last few weeks, but I want to spend the rest of that life with you, and my daughters, and our friends who just happen to be angels. Will you allow me to do that?"

Tears welled up in Cindy's eyes as she listened to her husband's apologize to her. She closed her blue eyes as she attempted to find her voice, and found it to be rather quiet and filled with sadness,

"I...I'll try, Brady...but I've also got something to tell you..."

"I know about the baby, Cin," Brady gently interrupted, giving her hands a gentle squeeze,

"I know you're pregnant...and we'll go through that together if you'll let me, Princess..."

Her eyes widened in shock at his words,

"How did you know?"

Brady shook his head slowly, not wanting to tell her that Monica had come into his motel room earlier and given him a piece of her mind,

"That doesn't matter right now...except that I had a little divine intervention when I didn't want it."

"It seems we have a lot to talk about," She whispered shakily.

"That we do, beautiful," He replied, rising to his feet and extending his hand to her, hoping she would take it,

"So what do you say we go inside and get started?"

Meeting her eyes with his, a tearful and small smile appeared on her face as she took his hand, and whispered softly.

"That's the best suggestion I've heard all day, Brady."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Monica sat at the kitchen table at the beach house in the early hours of the morning, when the sky was it's darkest before the dawn. She had made no attempt to sleep, or even to make coffee as she tried to come to terms with what she had done today in walking off the assignment. She wasn't even sure of what had caused her to go and see Brady one last time, other than feeling angry and needing to get it out of her system, but now that the anger was gone, all that was left was the horrible pain of knowing she had betrayed Andrew.

He had kept his promise to her over the years, to never walk out again when things got tough, and today she had done little better. Things had gotten tough and she had given up and left and she had no idea how she was ever going to face him again. The pain and disappointment on his handsome face tore at her heart, as she tried to make sense of why it had all happened.

Finally, her mind exhausted and the pain welling up inside of her got to be too much as she rested her head on her folded arms and sobbed brokenly over what she had lost. Minutes ticked by before she realized she was no longer alone and looking up through blurred vision, another sob escaped her as she saw the Angel's Angel sitting across from her,

"I…I must really be in trouble if they sent you, Sam…" She managed to choke out, covering her face with her hands miserably.

His arms crossed in front of his chest, Sam nodded slowly, not really looking forward to this lecture he was abotu to give. He had grown rather close to this Irish angel over the past few years, and she had also seemed to grow rather fond of him as well; but now, after getting the news of how she had walked off of her assignment, leaving Andrew to fend for them both...and also hearing that she had given Brady a piece of her mind, he knew one thing and that was that he wasn't happy in the least,

"I would say 'yes', Monica. Trouble is probably the understatement of the century."

"I-I'm sorry I did it, Sam, but I couldn't take it anymore-"

"You hadn't even talked to Angel for 5 minutes, Monica, before you walked off the assignment," Sam interrupted, his arms still crossed as he looked sternly at the weeping angel,

"Let me ask you this. How do you think that made Andrew and the Sullivan's feel?"

"They're disappointed in me, I know that..." Monica choked out as she lowered her eyes to the tabletop,

"And a part of me wishes I could take it back, but nothing is ever going to be the same again and I couldn't take it anymore."

"I think the decision as to whether or not things will ever be the same again is up the Father, don't you?" His voice was firm as he continued,

"And unless seeing into the future is one of your gifts, I don't see where you have the right or the knowledge to make that judgment. If I recall correctly, your gift is truth, preferably spoken in a kind, loving way and I'm not sure of what happened to those two things today, Monica. An intentionally broken promise is very much like a lie and you've hurt Andrew deeply with that today. He was relying on you and you chose to just walk out. You know Andrew would have been more than willing to talk it out with you; he always does, but you never gave him the chance. As for your tone with Brady, the nicest thing I can say is that you did indeed speak the truth, but your anger and hatred for him right now is more than a problem…"

"I know…I know…" Monica sobbed miserably,

"You're not telling me anything I don't know…but I don't know how to fix it, Sam! I've made too many mistakes this time…I've lost Andrew's trust…"

"For the time being, yes, you have, Monica," Sam sternly replied, feeling some sympathy for the younger angel in front of him, but also knowing that the words he spoke was the truth and he couldn't let her get away with her earlier actions,

"Why, though? You didn't think twice about leaving today-"

"I was scared, Sam! I was hurt!" Monica cried as she looked at the Angel's Angel through blurred vision.

"Well, how do you think the others feel? They're hurt as well, and the Father said he needed the THREE of you on this assignment, not just Andrew and Kevin," Sam interrupted, his eyes narrowing slightly,

"Yes, Angel hurt you with her words, but she has been feeling lonely these last 2 months over all that has happened, and also with what has been going on with Brady and Cindy, along with her siblings. And I hate to say it, but you also hurt her more today when you walked out on the case. Andrew once again had to explain to her why you did it, and she doesn't understand."

"But I c-can't go back there..." The sobbing Irish angel whispered in misery,

"I can't face them after what I did; Andrew is never going to forgive me, and he'll never trust me again!"

"I would think by now you would be very well versed in Andrew's ability to forgive," Sam replied, raising an eyebrow at her knowingly,  
"As far as his trust go, that may take some time and that is up to you as to how important having his trust is. You broke two promises to him; to not walk off the assignment and to try and control your temper. Brady didn't make you angry after you arrived, you showed up there furious with him."

"I..I think I was more angry with myself at that moment…Brady just seemed like a good target," She admitted tearfully,  
"Does Andrew know?"

"About your attack on Brady? No, not yet and it should be up to you to tell him about it," He sighed sadly as she lowered her head into her arms and sobbed once more at the thought of having to tell him. Softening, he reached across the table and took her hand, watching as she looked up once more,  
"Monica, the hardest thing for anyone to do, whether they be human or angel is to admit to someone they love that they've done something wrong. However, it is also the start of being able to fix what is wrong; between you and Andrew and between you and the Sullivan's. The healing has to begin somewhere and in this case, it has to begin with you."

Monica nodded her head tearfully, her dark eyes showing her complete distress,  
"I'm so ashamed, Sam," She whispered sadly.

"I know you are, Monica," Sam replied with a heavy sigh, as he removed his hand from the Irish angel's,

"Which is why you need to take the first step and fix this as soon as possible..."

Her lower lip quivering madly, Monica looked up briefly at the Angel's Angel,

"C-Can't you tell him...or someone else...?"

Narrowing his eyes at the little Irish angel, Sam once again crossed his arms in front of him and leaned back in his chair,

"You know the answer to that. Nobody is going to tell him except for you, Monica. Now, I can give you 24 hours to think this through, but by then I expect you to return to that family...and both the Father and I expect you to tell Andrew the entire truth." He looked straight into her eyes and said firmly,

"Is that understood, Monica?"

Forcing herself to nod her head, the Irish angel wiped at the tears on her pale cheeks as she replied miserably,

"Yes..." With that one single word, she then watched as Sam nodded his head before disappearing from the kitchen.

Monica drew in a trembling breath as she rested her hand on the doorknob of the Sullivan house a few hours later. Though Sam had given her 24 hours, she knew that would only result in making her crazy and not coming here at all was not an option. She knew what she wanted to say to her best friend, and only prayed she could get through it without breaking down as she didn't want him forgiving her out of sympathy because she was crying. He deserved better than that.

Opening the door and entering the house took every bit of courage in her and she was surprised to see Andrew sitting in the chair near the window and one look at him told her that he had not gotten any sleep last night either. She watched miserably as he looked up at her, surprise flickering briefly in his green eyes, before he lowered them once more.

Forcing herself to move, she approached him and knelt down to the floor in front of him, praying for the right words to say as she stared down at her trembling hands. She was silent for a moment before she finally spoke, her voice just a whisper,

"Andrew, I walked out of here yesterday and that was wrong of me…but it didn't stop there…" Monica swallowed hard, wanting to get this part of it over and out in the open,

"I then went to Brady in his motel and…and proceeded to tell him how it was. I felt hatred for him in those minutes and that was pretty evident in the way I acted as my temper was completely out of control…" Looking up at him, she continued, her voice trembling,

"I disappointed you, hurt you and betrayed your trust in me, and I have never felt more terrible, more ashamed or more afraid than I do right now…"

She stopped for a moment, waiting to see if he would say anything, but he never turned to face her and he never spoke. Sucking in a shaky breath, the Irish angel reached trembling hands out and rested them on his knees before finding her voice again,

"I know that 'I'm sorry' doesn't cut it this time, Andrew...I went too far this time, and-and I know that you must feel that I could care less over whether you trust me or not, but I do...it's one of the most important things in the world to me, and I've never been sorrier..." She choked on a sob as she forced herself to continue,

"I don't expect you to forgive me immediately; I don't, Andrew. But I really am sorry..."

"Weren't you sorry the other day, too, at the stream, Monica?" The older angel spoke up for the first time, his green eyes still turned to the window and his voice laced with hurt and disappointment,

"You were sorry then when you promised me that you would try."

"Yes," She admitted miserably, trying to think of what to say to soothe his hurt and disappointment in her,

"I was and I threw it all away yesterday. I think…I thought that one by one I was losing them…Wendy, then Patrick and Carol and now Paddy and then when Angel said what she did, though she had every right to say it, I felt her slipping away too and it just got to be too much. I'm not trying to make excuses…I was wrong and I know that and there is no way I can take it back, but I just want you to understand…"

"I knew what you were feeling and was more than willing to talk it through with you, but you didn't leave enough time for that," Andrew stated coolly.

She closed her eyes for a moment, willing back tears,

"I know. The other thing I know is how you felt yesterday, because it's how I felt all those years ago when you would leave and I can't believe I would do that to you knowing how terrible it feels. You promised me all those years ago you would never do that again and you've kept that promise and I can't even keep it for one day. Things have been so good between us since that time and I hate myself for jeopardizing our relationship like this…" Struggling to keep her composure, she continued weakly,

"And I don't want you to give me your trust back, even if you were to feel so inclined. I'll earn it back, Andrew…I promise I will…"

Instead of replying, Andrew just nodded his head sadly as he briefly turned around to look into her tear-stained face,

"Go on up to bed, Monica," He said quietly, his voice choking up slightly,

"We'll talk more tomorrow."

Still kneeling down next to him, her hands still on his knees, the Irish angel tried to meet his green eyes with hers as she responded,

"Don't you need some sleep...?"

"Don't worry about me," The supervisor shook his head tiredly as he sighed heavily,

"Just go and get some sleep, okay?" He turned his head back to the window and leaned his head back against the chair, wishing that she would go before he completely broke down.

Her heart breaking and knowing she would never be able to sleep with things the way they were, Monica felt the sobs welling up inside of her,

"Andrew, please…" She pleaded with him, watching as he kept his eyes focused on the window. Knowing she couldn't keep it inside much longer, she shakily rose to her feet,

"I am so sorry…just so sorry, Andrew…and they aren't just hollow apologies. Believe me, no one is more disappointed in me than I am right now, for hurting one I love so much…I wish I could take it back…I'd do anything to take it back…and you have every right to be angry…but I can't bear for things to…end like this…" Unable to hold the tears back any longer, she turned and bolted into the kitchen, where the sobs tore through her violently as she leaned against the wall and eventually sank down to the floor.

As she lowered her face into her hands, her sobs slowly quieted as she heard the weeping on the other side of the kitchen door. Her heart shattered as she knew that her dearest friend couldn't hold in his emotions any longer, and she wanted more then anything to throw herself into his arms and hold him; but she knew that wasn't possible at the moment.

Finally rising to her feet once again, the Irish angel ran towards the staircase on shaking legs and threw open her bedroom door. As she shut it tightly behind her, Monica didn't even realize that Kevin had poked his head out of his own room, his brown eyes filled with deep worry for his two closest friends and co-workers.

As he debated over where to go, whether he wanted to check and see what had happened downstairs or see if Monica was all right, Kevin decided to head towards the staircase and just as he reached the landing, he watched through tired eyes as Andrew walked exhaustedly through the kitchen door and leaned his head up against it.

Taking a deep breath, the youngest angel spoke up, his voice rather quiet,

"Monica came back?"

Watching as Andrew simply nodded his head, Kevin drew in a deep breath, knowing by Monica's sobs and the way Andrew looked right now that things were anything but good between his two friends,

"So, what are you going to do?"

Running his hand over his face to wipe away most of the tears, Andrew shrugged his shoulders,

"I don't know, Kevin."

Chewing on his lip for a moment, the youngest angel decided to throw caution to the wind,

"Well, I do know that you being down here and her up there isn't going to resolve a thing. She's obviously sorry, you're obviously miserable, so what is there not to know?"

Drawing in a shaky breath, Andrew collapsed in one of the kitchen chairs and rubbed at his tired eyes,

"What I don't know is how to handle things right now, Kevin...after all that's happened, after all the broken promises, I just need to wait till tomorrow to talk with her some more..." He lowered his tousled head into his hands and forced himself to take deep breaths,

"I hate myself for even suggesting that, but it needs to be done..."

Kevin gulped as he listened to his friend and supervisor, not sure of how to respond. Finally, he took a seat in the empty chair next to Andrew and looked into his tired face,

"Tell me, though; have you had a wink of sleep these past 24 hours?"

Andrew shook his head tiredly,

"No. I can't sleep with all that's going on, so I gave up trying..."

"Well, it seems you have two options," Kevin replied, deciding to try one more time,

"You either try to get some sleep or you go and try to work this out with Monica."

Andrew was quiet for a moment before he nodded his head,

"I'll see you in the morning then, Kevin."

Watching his friend and supervisor head up to his room, Kevin hung his head sadly, knowing neither of his friend's were going to see any rest tonight, or anytime soon until this was resolved.

_Written by: CI and KP_

Wendy rubbed her eyes sleepily as she padded into the kitchen the following morning. The teenager hadn't gotten any sleep the night before, her mind so focussed on what had occured with Angel and her parents and she couldn't stop thinking about any of them; and hearing the words her father had spoken to Andrew and Monica made her even more angry and she didn't know whether or not she'd ever be able to forgive him for his actions.

Hearing clattering in the kitchen, she pushed open the door, fully expecting her mother to be in there fixing breakfast,

"Mom?"

She opened her mouth again, but stopped suddenly as she saw her father in front of the stove, a spatula in his hand. Her blue eyes widened in shock at seeing him home and she kept her hand on the door knob as she whispered cooly,

"Dad..."

"Good morning, Wendy," He greeted her, attempting a friendly smile his daughter's way.

"What are you doing here?" She asked coldly, trying to feel out what the situation was.

Sensing his daughter's anger at him, and totally understanding it, Brady set down a plate of eggs and toast on the table and indicated for her to sit down. She looked undecided at first, but then took a seat, her wary eyes on him,

"Wendy, honey, I know I've been a total jerk the last few weeks and that no amounts of apologies can begin to make up for it, but I am sorry. I had a few things pointed out to me last night that made me realize that I stood to lose my family if I didn't get myself straightened out and that is something I never want to see happen," He blinked back tears as he continued,

"I love you girls and your mom and I don't want to lose any of you, and for the record, I happen to love the angels too and the things I said about them were wrong. I'm just hoping you can one day find it in your heart to forgive me, sweetheart."

Wendy tilted her head to the side and frowned slightly as she examined her father,

"Do you really mean this, dad...or are you just saying it to make yourself feel better about it?"

Brady lowered his head in shame as he took a seat in the chair next to his daughter and reached for her left hand,

"I mean it with my whole entire heart, sweetheart. I love you, Wendy; I love all of you and I was a royal jerk. I'm not afraid to admit it and I don't expect you to forgive me right now, but I hope that you'll try...and realize here and now just how much I love you."

Tears welling up in the teenager's soft blue eyes, Wendy smiled slightly in her father's direction as she nodded her head,

"I'll try hard, daddy...and I love you too."

Opening his arms to his daughter, Brady breathed a sigh of relief as Wendy moved into them and he hugged her tightly,

"Thank you, sweetheart. I couldn't ask for anything more."

Walking wearily into the kitchen, Andrew breathed the first sigh of relief he had felt in days as he saw Wendy embracing her father, despite the fact that he felt a little unsure of Brady's feelings about them being here. Though the human had said that he had some divine intervention last night, Andrew was sure that it had not been Monica based on what she had told him last night, and he wondered who else had paid Brady a visit.

Seeing Andrew come into the kitchen, Brady released his hold on Wendy and rose to his feet, meeting the angel's eyes,

"Andrew…I owe you an apology as well. I'm sorry for the things I said to the three of you and I know in my heart you all did all you could to help Paddy. I guess I was angry over losing my son and that anger got the better of me."

Andrew stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jeans and lowered his head, his green eyes still filled with exhaustion, fatigue and sadness. Finally, he lifted his eyes and met them with his human friend's again,

"It's fine, Brady..."

"No, it's not fine, Andrew," The human shook his head hard as he made his way over to his angelic friend,

"None of what I did was 'fine', and I said really hateful things to all of you...and I really am sorry." He stopped for a moment before asking softly,

"I hope that you can find it in you to forgive me someday...?"

With a tired sigh, the angel attempted a weak smile as he replied back,

"I can do that, Brady."

Breathing a sigh of relief, the human felt like another weight had been lifted from his shoulders as he made his way over to the blonde angel and hugged him tightly,

"Thanks, buddy. I really appreciate it..."

"We're just glad to have you back to normal, Brady," Andrew replied, returning the embrace,

"You've been missed around here."

"Well, I owe the little eye opening to a certain little angel with an accent and a temper that matches mine," Brady replied, indicating for Andrew to sit down as he cracked more eggs into a pan.

Andrew looked up sharply at Brady's words and then sighed,

"I'm sorry she was so out of control, Brady…she knows better-."

"Andrew," Brady interrupted, with a shake of his head,

"Though I can say it wasn't the sweetest conversation I've ever had with her, had she been her usual self, I'd of had her for dinner. I was furious when she showed up, but she didn't let me get a word in edgewise and for the first time, I really heard what you guys had all been trying to tell me. Though I'm ashamed to admit it, had she not been equally as furious, I don't think I'd be standing here right now fixing you breakfast."

"You mean, she was the only one that talked to you?" Andrew whispered, his green eyes widening.

Glancing over at his friend, Brady nodded as he set a place of scrambled eggs and toast in front of Andrew,

"Yeah...and she's pretty good at it, too." Seeing the miserable look on the angel's face, the human placed a hand on his shoulder and asked,

"Are you okay?"

Picking up the fork and moving the eggs around on his place, Andrew forced a nod as he glanced up at his friend,

"Yeah...yeah, I'm fine. I just didn't realize that she was the one that had talked to you..."

"Are things okay with you two, Andrew?" Wendy asked gently as she reached for the angel's left hand.

As he put a forkfull of eggs in his mouth, Andrew thought about the question for a few moments and as he swallowed, he turned his pained green eyes to the teenager and replied quietly,

"Hopefully soon they will be..."

Seeing the pained look in her friend's eyes, Wendy reached across the table and rested her hand on his arm,

"Andrew?"

Snapping out of his thoughts, Andrew pushed his plate back and stood up,

"I'm sorry, Brady…I'm not all that hungry at the moment and I think I need to clear my head…"

"Sure, buddy," Brady replied worriedly, watching as the angel retreated from the kitchen,

"I wonder what that is all about…"

Shaking her head in concern, Wendy sighed heavily,

"I'm not sure, but I do hope he's right and that everything with everyone is going to be fine soon."

Smiling at his daughter, Brady rested his hands on her shoulders,

"We're all going to get there, sweetie. One step at a time."

Andrew made his way out onto the front porch and took a seat on the bottom step, resting his head wearily into his hands. All of a sudden, he was starting to feel light headed, his thoughts continuing to travel to his best friend; yes, she did betray his trust two days ago, but he had never expected to hear from Brady just now that she was the one who had gone into his motel room and gave him a good talking to.

"It's all such a mess..." He mumbled weakly to himself, his forehead leaning into his palms,

"Oh Father, give me strength..."

"He will give it to you, Angel Boy," Rose's soothing voice came from in front of him, but he never lifted his head as he sensed her take a seat next to him on the step,

"But you also know you have to talk to your Angel Girl before things get any worse. Tell her the truth, honey; tell her your true feelings, and then both the Father and I promise you that He will start to heal both of your hearts." She rested a compassionate hand on her friend's shoulder as she spoke.

"It's all so confusing, Rose. She never should have spoken to Brady like that, but it was the one thing that worked…" Andrew uttered tearfully.

"The Father can take anything and make it into something good, honey," Rose reminded him gently,

"Even the fiery temper of a certain angel who is feeling as lost and alone as you are right now. Talk to her, sweetheart, and be honest with her. If you don't communicate with her, all the growth your friendship has done the last several years will be for nothing and you don't want that."

"No," He uttered quietly, shaking his head,

"I love her far too much to want that. I've just always trusted her, Rose. So many of the times we've fought in the past have been my fault or both of our faults and this is different. This was a promise; a promise she made me keep years ago by given me an ultimatum, to either promise her not to leave again or to leave her existence for good."

"And you did keep it, Angel Boy," Rose pointed out, her eyes steadily meeting his sad green ones.

"But I can't help feeling betrayed by what she did, Rose," Andrew shook his tousled blonde head as a frown crossed his handsome face,

"I can keep the promise, but she can't? I don't think that's fair..." He drew in a sharp breath before running a hand through his hair,

"And I know what I'm saying isn't fair, but...it's how I feel..."

"And you have a right to those feelings, honey, and you need to tell them to Monica. All of them," The oldest angel gave him a gentle smile as she lovingly rubbed his back,

"You can do it, Angel Boy; I have all the faith in the world in you..."

A sad smile crossed his face at her words as a few tears also escaped his eyes,

"I appreciate that, but it's just so hard...I don't know how to begin."

"If you just stay honest, Andrew, the words will come, and they may hurt at first, but you have to sort through the damage to find the silver lining sometimes," She told him gently as she stood up to leave,

"Just don't wait too long, honey. Silence builds walls, and then you both have a much bigger problem."

He nodded his head as he watched her go before he rested his head in his hands, silently praying to the Father for strength and the right words to say.

Monica knocked tentatively on Angel's door that morning, trying once again to summon her courage. Though she felt positively numb inside over her relationship with Andrew, and had decided against venturing downstairs today, she no longer felt like sitting in her room in tears when she had other bridges to mend, and maybe mending one would somehow help her. Her conversation with Andrew had left her broken hearted and sleepless, but despite the pain, she had still hurt Angel as well.

Hearing Angel call out for her to come in, the angel opened the door and walked inside, closing the door behind her,

"Angel, can we talk, please?"

The teenager looked up in surprise before she looked away, a hurt expression on her face,

"I thought you left," She said coldly.

Monica lowered her head in shame as she came into the room and shut the door softly behind her. Taking a seat next to the girl on the bed, the Irish angel drew in a deep breath as she attempted to put her thoughts into words,

"I did, Angel, but I realized just how wrong I was. I would like to explain it to you, if you'll let me..."

"I first would like the answer as to why you hurt us twice in two weeks?" She demanded, her blue eyes filled with hurt,

"First, you didn't show up for Paddy's funeral and then you left because I was angry for the time being...Andrew told me that you thought I hated you. How could you even think that, Monica, how?"

Her face flushing crimsom, the Irish angel fiddled with the bed sheet as she opened her mouth to reply,

"I had so many conflicting emotions going on at the moment, sweetie, I wasn't thinking clearly. I was also so upset over what was happening with your father; I know that doesn't give me any right to walk out like I did, especially when you needed me..."

"You're right, it doesn't," Angelica cooly interrupted, narrowing her eyes.

Knowing this was not going well and already feeling completely beaten down after trying to talk to Andrew and having been awake for what seemed like forever, Monica found herself forcing back tears once more,

"I'm so sorry, Angel. I made a mistake, a terrible mistake, not just once, but twice and I know I hurt you…I hurt a lot of people I love and I'm willing to take as much time as it takes to make it up to all of you. I just hope you can one day forgive me."

"I told you the other day, I would think about it," Angel replied, her voice almost angry,

"I still feel the same way, but that doesn't mean you're gonna take off out the door again, does it?"

Closing her eyes against the painful words, Monica replied softly,

"No. I'm not leaving again. I promise you that," She managed to say, though everything in her just wanted to flee this house and never look back.

"I guess we'll see then, won't we?" Angel turned her eyes away from Monica and back to her bed,

"But I would like to be alone right now, Monica, all right?" Lifting her eyes briefly, she added,

"Please?"

Unable to mistake the frustration laced in her voice, the Irish angel let out a heavy sigh as she rose to her feet and looked down at the teenager,

"All right. But when you want to talk again-"

"I know, I know, you'll be here," Angel interrupted almost sarcastically as she hugged a pillow to her belly, now ignoring Monica completely.

Sensing there was nothing else she could do right now, Monica nodded her head sadly before turning around and disappearing out the bedroom door, the tears now falling from her brown eyes.

_Written by: CI and KP_

An hour later, Andrew slowly walked upstairs and hesitantly knocked on Monica's door, praying he had the strength to say the things he needed to say and not make matters worse than they already were. Not getting an answer, he quietly opened the door and sighed softly as his eyes came to rest on his best friend.

She was curled up in the chair near the window, the angel bear clenched tightly up against her chest. Her face was buried in the soft, white fur as quiet sobs caused her shoulders to tremble. Her bed had either been made or not slept in at all, and like his own, he was fairly certain it was the latter of the two. As he walked over to the side of the bed closest to her and sat down, she never noticed him until he spoke her name.

Looking up and seeing him, another sob escaped her as she looked away for a moment, unsure of how much more she could take, but she also knew her dearest friend had a right to say what was on his heart, no matter how awful it made her feel, not that she thought she could feel much worse,

"A-Andrew…"

For a split second, he wished he could forget the whole thing ever happened and just wrap her up in his arms, but he knew eventually, the hard feelings, if left unsaid, would catch up to him and that wouldn't be fair to either of them,

"I need to say a few things, Monica, and I need to be honest. I also need for you to listen and to answer a few questions. Do you think you can do that?"

Though his voice wasn't angry or cold, it did lack it's usual warmth when he talked to her and Monica nodded her head jerkily as she choked out in a hoarse whisper,

"Yes, sir…."

Andrew sucked in a deep breath and he lowered his eyes to his folded hands before looking back up and facing his best friend, not looking foward to the words he was going to say,

"First of all, Monica, I want to tell you that I'm glad you came back last night; I really am. And I am glad that you were able to get Brady to return home to his family...but with that being said, I have some other things to tell you." He fell silent for a moment before he looked straight into her tear-streaked face,

"I don't understand why you decided to leave to begin with. I thought you knew that I was willing to talk it over with you, but you barely gave me the chance to. You also broke a 'cross my heart' promise, Monica, and you know well that's a big thing..."

"I know, Andrew, and I'm so sorry about it..." She started, but stopped as her best friend and supervisor held his hand up and silenced her.

"I'm not finished yet, Mon," He interrupted and waited until she nodded her head in agreement before continuing.

"Especially after you gave me an ultimatum all those years ago about my leaving you and I'm not saying you were wrong to do that, but I kept that promise to you and will continue to keep it. But imagine how I feel when you can't even keep it for a day, Monica. We had just had a conversation the day before where you mentioned being afraid of losing my trust, but you couldn't have been that afraid of it for you to walk out of here the other day," He drew in a deep breath as he saw the tears welling up in her swollen eyes once more,

"The last thing I ever wanted to have was a trust issue with you; you more than any other angel, Monica and now we have one and I'm not sure of what to do about it."

"I'll earn it back, Andrew…I promise I will," Monica wept softly,

"Just give me the chance…"

"But what do I do in the meantime and why did it mean so little to you to betray it in the first place?" He asked, trying to hold back his own tears over his own hurt and her obvious pain over this.

"I-It didn't mean so little to me…it means everything to me," She cried out, knowing she was reaching her breaking point and she didn't know the answers anymore,

"I was feeling so guilty and so useless…like I couldn't do anything right…."

"I told you over and over again, Monica, that I had forgiven you about all of it," Andrew interrupted, finally giving in and allowing the tears to fall from his pained green eyes,

"I even told you after you talked to Brady when we first arrived the other day how proud I was of you. And you even talked to Angel not that long after! I knew how guilty you felt, but she needed some time; and I was willing to help you through all of that. But you wouldn't let me; instead you just broke the same promise you asked me to keep all those years ago. I know that you said my trust means everything to you, but...but it doesn't FEEL like it, Monica. After all we've gone through, I don't understand why you won't let me help when you feel horrible...you've got to let me and not walk off the assignment!"

Monica bit her lower lip as she continued clutching the white angel bear to her chest, the tears neve failing to end,

"W-What can I do to earn back your trust...? I want it back so much, and I'm so horribly sorry..."

"I can't even think about that yet," He replied, wiping at his eyes,

"But I want you to answer the question. Why wouldn't you let me help you when you felt that badly? I'm your friend, I'm your supervisor, in both cases, it is my job to help you and I want to, but you slammed the door so fast, I couldn't! I would rather have had you here, taking the time to talk things out with you, then for you to take off in the middle of this, after promising not to. So, why has this suddenly become an issue?"

"Because…I-I didn't want to pull you anymore…when you said I had been doing that, I could see it was true…." She struggled to explain.

"Talking to me is not pulling me in two different direction, Monica and you know the difference," He countered, trying so hard to understand.

Suddenly, she couldn't take it anymore. Nothing she said seemed to be making a difference, to him or to Angel, and she was starting to feel as if she would be sick as her stomach was so in knots,

"Andrew…Andrew, please…two minute time out, please….because I can't…I can't…." Unable to continue, she lowered her head and cried harder than she thought she ever had in her existence before. She didn't know what else to do or say as nothing was helping. She knew he just wanted to understand, but she was suddenly too overwhelmed to even think straight anymore.

Andrew lowered his head miserably as he heard the heart-breaking sobs escaping from his best friend and he wanted more then anything to go over to her and wrap his arms around her and comfort her, but something in him stopped him and he knew that he couldn't do that just yet,

"I really wish I didn't have to say these things, Monica..." He whispered dejectedly as he wiped at his eyes once more.

It took the sobbing Irish angel a few torturous moments to finally reply to his comment when she looked up at him through blurred vision,

"You say what needs to be said, Andrew..." She let out a hiccup before attempting to continue,

"No matter h-how much it hurts..."

"I just want you to make me understand," He replied softly, looking over at her,

"I need to understand this, Monica, because right now, I'm not sure that I do."

Looking away for a moment as the sobs continued to wrack through her, she tried to dig deep within herself for any other reasons she had done what she had. Closing her eyes as a truth hit, her, she struggled to speak through her tears,

"I knew I was going to blow it, Andrew…it was only a matter of when…when we talked the other day…and you told me you were proud of me…remember….remember I told you how afraid I was of saying or doing something wrong?" Opening her eyes, she saw him nod his head,

"Everything I had done wrong so far…with Mr. Keyser, with Thorn…with not going to the funeral…you said you forgave me for, and I know that you did…but…I never…I never forgave myself for them…I knew I had already failed in all the ways that c-counted and I couldn't get all those things out of my head…and when I made that promise to you…I wasn't feeling good enough about myself to believe I could possibly not screw it up…not after the mistakes I had made so far….I wanted to keep that promise…I did…but the whole time I kept hating myself for the things I had done….mostly to you, with the fire and everything else…" She gasped for breath, trying to get the words out between sobs,

"I blamed myself…and I still do….so when things went so wrong with Brady the other day…and then with A-Angel…all I could think was that I couldn't do this…that I was failing anyone and everyone…and suddenly it seemed less painful to just fail it all and walk away…than to keep making mistakes and making it worse…but now, I've made it so much worse…and I don't…I don't know how to fix any of it anymore…." The words finally out as the truth settled deep in her heart, she lowered her head once more and gave in to more tears.

Feeling like his heart was being ripped from him at the words spoken from his best friend's mouth, Andrew lowered his head to hide the many tears in his own eyes before several minutes passed and he spoke up once more,

"I wish I knew how to fix it too, Monica..."

"I-I just want you to give me another chance, Andy..." The Irish angel spoke through her sobs, never once looking over at him,

"I can't live without you, and I will spend the rest of my existence making it up to you i-if you'll forgive me...I swear that I will try harder next time..."

A tense silence filled the room as Andrew slowly started to understand where his best friend was coming from and why she had done what she did. On shaky legs, the older angel slowly rose to his feet and made his way over to where Monica sat with her head in her hands and her shoulders shaking with heart-breaking sobs. Tears running like rain down his own handsome face, the blonde angel slowly knelt down in front of her and rested his hands on his knees,

"I think...I'm starting to understand what you mean, Monica..."

"I-It all felt so overwhelming…I couldn't…I didn't know how…." She stopped trying to speak, the pain so great it was consuming her as she only cried harder in her frustration.

Unable to stand it a moment longer, Andrew rose to his feet and pulled her into his arms, but she was shaking so badly, she could hardly stand. Sitting down in the chair, he pulled her into his lap and held her tightly up against him, feeling her clutching him with a desperation that took his breath away.

"I-I'm sorry….I'm so sorry…please, Andrew…." She choked out, beginning to cough from the violent sobs that had been flowing through her the last several minutes.

"Shhh," He whispered, his own tears streaking his cheeks as he spoke to her,

"We're getting somewhere now, sweetie. I needed you to tell me the truth so I could understand why you did what you did," Her painful sobs beginning to scare him, he held her tighter,

"Calm down, Mon'. We're going to get through this, okay? You're not going to lose me, not now and not ever. That was never the issue here, Angel Girl."

"I thought...I thought..." She stuttered through her sobs, but was unable to continue as she tightened her grip on him.

Shaking his head, Andrew rested his chin on the top of her head as he ran shaking hands through her tangled main of auburn hair,

"No, you are not losing me, Angel Girl. And things are slowly starting to look well with the Sullivans, so we are going to get through this, Monica. We all will..." Finally finding the strength to gently pull away from her, he rested his hands on the side of her face and met his teary green eyes with hers,

"Do you understand me, Monica? We are going to get through this, you, me and everyone else. Trust me, okay?"

Breaking down into fresh sobs, the Irish angel nodded her head,

"I trust you with all my heart, Andy...with all my heart and soul..."

Nodding his head as she continued to cry, he pulled her back into his shaking arms as his mind thought back to some of the conversations they had been having lately. She had admitted before blaming herself for the fire and though he had thought he had gotten her to see that she hadn't, he had been wrong and he knew that like the horrible day on Erin's porch, it could take time for her to forgive herself. She had also admitted the sudden fears she had felt about doing something unforgivable, so maybe he should have seen this coming. His friend had been putting so much pressure on herself to do better and when it had failed with Brady and Angel, she had given up; not so much on him or on having his trust, but on herself. It didn't change things, but he did now understand and that came as a great relief to him,  
"Shhh," He whispered, rubbing her back gently,  
"Please stop crying, sweetie. We'll work on this together, Monica, okay? You and I have just hit a bump in the road, just like we have in the past, but we're going to work through it."

"J-Just say you forgive me?" She pleaded tearfully, her face pressed against the nape of his neck as she clung to him, afraid to let go,  
"I-I don't know if A-Angel ever will now, but please…"

"You talked to Angel today?" He whispered sadly, his heart breaking for her, despite the fact she had been the one to leave.

"Y-yes…and it didn't go so well either…I know I screwed up, but…I don't want to lose everything that is important to me because of it…You don't have to trust me right now, Andrew…but please…please forgive me…I'll earn your trust or spend the rest of my existence trying, but I have to know if you forgive me…."

Forcing herself to pull away, her tear-filled eyes looked into his. Noticing he was about to say something, she stopped him, afraid of what he would say and her blurred vision missing the love in his own teary green eyes,  
"I'll do better…I'll never walk away again…I promise….I cross my heart promise a million times over, Andrew…because I never want to feel this terrible again…I never want to hurt you like this again...just please forgive me…"

Andrew was silent for a few minutes as Monica continued to look into his own sad eyes, going over everything she was saying in his head. He had always been able to forgive her whenever she had made errors in the past, but today was different. Drawing in a deep breath, the older angel silently lifted up a prayer to the Father, asking Him to help him be able to forgive his best friend for the broken promises she had made to him; the last thing he wanted to do to her now was hurt her even more.

Letting out the breath he had been holding in, the older angel nodded his head as he felt the Love of the Father pour down on him. Attempting a weak smile at the little Irish angel, Andrew reached his hand out and laid it against the side of her face as he finally replied,

"Yes, I forgive you, Angel Girl."

Sobbing in relief, Monica threw herself back into her best friend's arms and clung to him as tightly as she dared to,

"Thank you...thank you...oh Andrew, I love you so much..."

_Written by: CI and KP_

Later that day, Angel finally ventured out of her room and downstairs, coming to a stand still when she saw both her mother and her father talking in the living room. Her blue eyes widened at the sight of her father not only being here, but not yelling at anyone either,

"Daddy?" She whispered tearfully.

Brady looked up from where he and Cindy were involved in a relatively serious discussion, with a tired look on his face, though he smiled warmly at her,

"Hey there, kitten. I thought you were going to sleep all day."

"No, I've been up…what are you doing here? I thought…" Angel felt rooted to where she stood, almost afraid to think that something might be turning around in their lives.

"I was wrong about a lot of things, sweetheart," He replied softly, getting up to walk over to her. Laying his hands on her shoulders, he looked into her eyes,

"I'm so sorry about everything, Angel."

A small, shaky smile crept across the teenager's lips as she felt her eyes brimming with tears as she listened to her father apologize,

"Really, daddy...? You and mom aren't..."

"No, baby, we're not going to get a divorce," As he spoke, Brady stole a glance over his shoulder at his wife before turning back to Angelica,

"We're going to work this out, Angel, and although it may take a while, it will all be okay in the end. I hope that you believe me and that someday you'll find it in your heart to forgive your old man..."

The teenager still looked slightly uncertain, but as she looked deep into her father's eyes and saw the regret and sorrow showing there, she started to realize that he was telling her the full truth and he really was sorry,

"So you're not angry with the angels anymore, dad?"

"No, kitten," Brady shook his head as a few tears escaped his dark brown eyes,

"I'm not. I love the angels very much, just as much as I love you, your sister and your mother. I will always love you, and I will spend the rest of my life making it up to all of you if that's what it takes..."

"I don't think it will take that long, daddy," She whispered tearfully, as she wrapped her arms around him tightly, relief flowing through her as she felt his arms encircle her. As she finally pulled away, she looked up into his eyes, a hint of fear showing in her own,

"I wanted to talk to you both…I have for a long time now, but things got so crazy…"

"Angel?" Cindy's eyes shone with worry as she watched Brady take her hand and lead her over to sit down between the two of them,

"What is it, honey?"

Angel lowered her head for a moment before she began speaking quietly,

"You know I want to give the baby up for adoption…I don't want to keep it as it would always feel like a reminder of…well, you know…"

"I think that's a wise decision, sweetie," Brady replied softly, waiting for her to continue.

"But…everyone at school knows what Mr. Keyser did, they just don't know who he did it to and…" Her cheeks flushed with shame as she tried to continue,

"I'm starting to show and I don't them figuring it out…I don't think it would take them long…I mean, the girl with no friends is suddenly pregnant and all…"

Brady exchanged a look with his wife as he took in all that Angel was telling them and he felt another feeling of sadness in his heart for his youngest daughter. But before he could say anything, she continued,

"I-I can't go back to school looking like this..." She indicated to her larger belly as she spoke,

"Everyone's only going to tease me continuously and I can't handle that...especially not now after Paddy..." She choked on a sob and was unable to continue.

Sucking in a sharp breath, Cindy reached for her daughter's trembling hand as a thought suddenly struck her and for the first time in a while, a smile spread across her face,

"Sweetheart, if you strongly feel this way, then I've got an idea. I'll explain it to you and then you can tell me what you think, all right? Both of you." Here, she looked up at her husband and was relieved to see them both nod their heads.

"Okay, mom..." Angel whispered, looking deep into her mother's soft blue eyes.

Exchanging another look with Brady as she wondered if this was a good time to bring this up with them trying to put their marriage back together, she continued softly,

"With both of us working, we can surely make it if I cut down to part time in order to home school Angel until the baby is born. Now, I don't know if there is any certification involved in that, but I can find out and we can take it from there. That way, you'll still be ready for high school next year."

Angel's eyes filled with tears as she looked at her mother,

"You'd do that for me, mom?" She uttered, her voice choked.

"Angel, there is nothing I wouldn't do for you. You should know that." Cindy replied softly.

"I think it's a great idea," Brady agreed, as he reached for his wife's hand, feeling sadness when she pulled it away after a moment and he knew it was too soon,

"I'd rather you take it easy anyway, Cindy, especially since you've been having a lot of sickness with this pregnancy."

Lowering her eyes away from her husband, Cindy wordlessly nodded her head before she reached for Angel's hand once more and held it in her own,

"But you don't have to worry about anything, sweetheart. Your dad and I will take care of everything, and you do not have to go back to school."

Weeping openly now, Angel flung her arms around her mother and embraced her with all her strenght,

"Thank you so much, mom...oh God, thank you..."

Gently rubbing his daughter's back as she wept in Cindy's arms, Brady looked over Angel's head at his wife and gave her a gentle smile and felt at least a bit of relief when she grinned slightly back at him.

Monica sat alone in her room early that evening, her heart still feeling unbearably heavy. She was still struggling with her own guilt issues about many things, but mostly her thoughts were on the fact that she knew deep inside that things were not right between she and Andrew, nor would they be for some time. She hadn't had the courage to ask him earlier where she stood with his trust in her as she hadn't felt strong enough to accept what she was sure would be the answer. Though he had stayed with her until she had cried herself to sleep, she had awoken a few hours later alone and had decided she was in little mood to speak with anyone.

A soft knock at her door caused her to look up tiredly as the door opened and she saw Brady peek in. Sighing softly, she motioned him into the room, knowing she had things to say to him as well.

Walking into the room, Brady didn't miss the fact that the little angel looked beaten down at the moment and he could clearly see sadness in her brown eyes,

"Do you have a minute, Monica?" He asked her gently, watching as she nodded her head and rose to her feet,

"Listen, I wanted to do two things here. One is to apologize to you for the way I've treated you. I've already talked to Andrew and Kevin and told them the same thing. I've been an idiot for weeks now and hateful to all three of you, when hate is the furthest thing from the truth as far as what I feel for you guys. The other thing is that I wanted to thank you for the things you said the other night. I may not have wanted to hear them at the time, but I needed to. You laid it all out for me and I could finally see the truth through my anger."

Monica's brown eyes widened in surprise as she faced the human and it took her a few moments to be able to reply,

"You want to...thank me...?"

"Yes, little angel, I do," Brady let out a heavy sigh as he took a seat on her bed and motioned for her to sit down next to him. As she hesitantly did so, the human looked deep into her sorrowful dark eyes as he spoke gently,

"I really don't think if you hadn't laid into me like you did, I wouldn't be here now, Monica. If you had let me get a word in for even a minute..." He shook his head as a flush rose to his cheeks,

"I fear what I would have done, as I was so furious...but I really am sorry for the way I treated you all. I had no business to do such things, and I hope that one day, you'll be able to accept my apology and learn to trust me again."

She was quiet for a moment as she gazed down at her hands, unable to believe that once again she was fighting tears as she couldn't believe she had any left inside of her,

"I'm the last one on the planet, Brady, who should right now not be accepting an apology or not trusting you," She said softly with a sigh,

"I shouldn't have laid into you like that…I was upset over other things I had done and I was just looking for a target at which to aim it, and you were that target. For whatever it's worth, I am sorry, though I'm glad on the other hand that it helped you. Are you and Cindy better?"

"I'm hoping we're going to get there," Brady replied sadly,

"We aren't better yet and she has some issues with trusting me that I completely understand. I guess it's just going to take some time," Worry in his eyes, he reached for her hand, surprised when she clasped it tightly in her own,

"Cindy told me what happened, honey and I'm sure all it is going to take with you and Andrew is some time too. You and I have made some terrible errors in judgment and facing up to those we hurt is hard, but we'll get through it."

"I wish I could just turn back time, Brady, and take back all of those horrible errors..." Monica's voice shook as she spoke, trying with everything in her to keep her emotions under control,

"I may have lost my best friend's trust forever, Brady-"

"No, I don't believe that it will be forever," The human gently interrupted as he laid a finger on her lips and silenced her,

"As I said, it will just take some time. We both know how sensitive both Andrew's and Cindy's hearts are and they were both wounded by this whole thing; we just need to be patient, little angel, okay?"

Biting her lip to hold back tears, the Irish angel nodded her head numbly before speaking again in a voice so quiet Brady could barely hear her,

"I'm still sorry for not controlling my temper the other day, despite what you just said. I'm an angel, Brady, and angels weren't supposed to act that hateful..."

Brady couldn't hold back a chuckle as he looked at her,

"Sweetheart, if you had spoken to me in this tone, I'd have made a meal out of you that night," Only seeing a very faint smile on her lips, he sighed,

"But I understand what you are saying, okay? And though you don't have to apologize, if it makes you feel better, then apology accepted."

"Thank you," She whispered sadly,

"And thank you for allowing me to still be a part of your family, Brady."

"I wouldn't have it any other way. It wouldn't be the same around here without Heaven's messengers floating in and out of our lives, you know?" Still seeing the deep grief in her eyes, Brady wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, a little amazed that she was even allowing this conversation after all he had done, but yet, on the other hand, they were both facing the same uncertainties with those who meant the most to them,

"If you need to talk, you know where to find me, okay?"

Nodding her head numbly, the Irish angel attempted the smallest of smiles in his direction,

"Thank you," She repeated hoarsely through her tears as she watched Brady rise to his feet and squeeze her shoulder gently,

"I'll see you later, okay...?"

Smiling reassuringly back at her, the human nodded his head before heading to the door,

"Yes, you will, little angel." With one final encouraging smile in the angel's direction, Brady walked out the door and softly shut it behind him.

"Are things okay with you and Mon?" Andrew's voice sounded from his own bedroom door and Brady turned around to face his friend and wasn't surprised to see a look of concern etched on his face.

"They're all right now," He replied with a nod of his bed before frowning slightly and asking a question of his own,

"But I guess the question right now is, are you all right?"

Sighing tiredly, Andrew looked down at his feet before looking up at the human,

"I will be, Brady...but right now, I need to have a talk with Monica as well..."

Knowing full well what this conversation would be about, Brady's face filled with sympathy as he patted his friend's shoulder reassuringly,

"You'll do fine, buddy, I know it." He then offered a smile in the angel's direction.

Smiling slightly back, although there was still a trace of sadness in it, Andrew headed towards his best friend's room as he replied over his shoulder,

"Well, I guess I better get this over with..." After his friend had disappeared down the stairs into the living room, Andrew drew in a deep breath before knocking softly in Monica's door.

_Written by: CI and KP_

Monica looked up from where she continued to sit on the bed as she saw Andrew walk into her room and she hastily wiped at the tears on her cheeks, wanting to appear braver than she felt right now,

"Did you get any sleep?" She asked shakily, wondering what he wanted and feeling terrible for even thinking that, but she somehow knew this wasn't going to be a social visit. Not after all that had happened.

"Some," Andrew replied softly, sitting down on the bed next to her, watching as she lowered her eyes,

"How about you?"

"A little," She remarked, her hands working nervously,

"I just have so much on my mind, but you know that, and I'm sure you do too."

"Yeah, you're right," He replied quietly, looking down at his own hands. A tense silence passed between the two friends and angels before Andrew broke it, deciding to get this over with as he knew it would be hard enough on both of them,

"Angel Girl, there's some more things I need to talk with you about, and none of them are going to be easy to say or hear, for that matter..."

Her hands starting to grow sweaty, the Irish angel looked into his serious green eyes as she whispered shakily,

"What else do you need to talk with me about?"

"Monica...this is really hard for me to say, so I'm just going to say it and get it over with," He started, already feeling his heart racing and his forehead beeded with nervous sweat,

"You know that I've forgiven you for what has happened these last few months; you know I told you that yesterday, right?" He watched as the Irish angel nodded her head and he could plainly see the fear and worry written all over her face,

"With that being said, Angel Girl, I have to tell you that...that my trust in you has been broken; it broke the day you walked out of this house, Monica, and although it's all forgiven, it will take some time for you to earn it back." He lowered his head for a moment as he forced back tears from his eyes,

"This is the hardest thing I've ever had to say, Monica, but I think you know why I had to say it..."

Though she had expected this, she never knew it would hurt so badly to hear. Lowering her head, she blinked back tears, as she found her voice,

"I understand," She whispered shakily.

"You know I never wanted it to come to this, but though I've forgiven you everything, I can't make myself ignore the things you did. Even overlooking the broken promises, which I can't do, you didn't listen to a lot of things I said through this whole assignment, but followed your own agenda. The angels that work with me, whether they be my best friend or not, I have to be able to trust with what I ask of them, and you've pushed it too far this time…" He drew in a shaky breath, never having known words that were harder for him to say.

Feeling a lump rising to her throat, she struggled to speak beyond it,

"So…what does this mean exactly? I mean, in our relationship, both working and not…"

"I'm not sure exactly," Andrew whispered sadly,

"On assignments, I may give Kevin the tougher parts of them as I can't risk you walking off or doing what you want to do. It's not that I want to continually have to watch you on assignments, but what choice have you left me? I've always given you both the freedom to handle things your way, but I don't feel like I can do that right now with you…"

"I...I understand why," Monica struggled to reply as she felt her eyes welling up with hot tears again,

"You have every right to do this...how long do you think it will last, though...?" She asked hesitantly.

Andrew shrugged his shoulders sadly as he looked down at his hands and noticed for the first time his knuckles were turning white from clutching them together so hard,

"I don't know to tell you the truth, Monica," He sighed heavily as he looked sadly up at her,

"It could take as long as a few years...it depends on how things go, really."

"I know how much this must hurt you too..." The Irish angel whispered as she was able to hear the emotion and sadness in her best friend's voice.

"It does...I don't want to do this, Angel Girl, but I have no choice in the matter," His shoulders slumped as he forced back tears from his emerald eyes,

"This assignment is just about over and after that...on our next assignments, things won't be the same for a while..."

"And what about us?" She whispered, almost afraid to ask,

"You're…you're still my friend though, right?"

"Yes!" He all but cried out, not ever wanting her to think any differently. Taking her by the shoulders, he forced her to look at him, tears escaping his eyes as he watched hers fall like rain,

"Yes, Monica, yes. Though the trust issues are still there in our friendship, you are still my friend, still my best friend and I don't want you doubting that for a minute. Yes, things are a little strained right now and they will be, but I am still here for you. We learn from our mistakes and I learned from mine, so don't go and make yourself sick over this or anything like that, okay? In fact, I want to help you through the things you are not forgiving yourself for, if you just keep opening up to me about them, but I don't want you thinking for one second that you are not my friend."

A sob escaped her as she looked away for a moment,

"I just wish I could take it back…I'd give anything to be able to do that, Andrew…knowing I've betrayed you hurts so much more than I ever thought it could," Covering her face with her hands she shook her head,

"This has been such a horrible day…"

"I know..." Andrew choked out as his own tears came harder,

"I know...it has been for me too, Angel Girl." He watched as she lifted her head wearily and looked him straight in the eyes.

"I-I don't know if you want to right now, but...but can I just hug you right now...? Please, Andrew?" Monica wiped at her eyes with the back of her sleeve and felt them only to be replaced by brand new ones.

Feeling like his heart had been stepped on that she even felt she had to ask that question, the older blonde angel nodded his head as he scooted closer to her and almost immediately felt her clinging tightly to him and her sobs shook through her,

"Of course you can, Monica," He replied, his voice thick with emotion as he kissed the top of her head and rested his cheek against her shoulder, his shaking arms holding her as tight as possible,

"Of course you can..."

"So, you all don't know when we'll see you again?" Cindy asked softly the next day as the three angels prepared to leave their home after nearly two months. With still feeling uncertain of her still strained relationship with Brady, she would have preferred to have them around awhile longer.

"No, Cindy," Andrew replied softly, his green eyes still showing exhaustion after another sleepless night,

"We have a little time off and then back to work as far as I know."

Sighing softly, she nodded in understanding,

"We're just really going to miss you is all," She said sadly, wrapping her arms around the supervising angel and hugging him tightly.

Wrapping his arms tightly around his human friend and kissing her cheek, Andrew sighed heavily before finding his voice again, though it was quieter then usual,

"We will be there for the birth of your child, though, Cin. That much we can promise." After a few more moments, he gently pulled away from her hold,

"And we love you all, don't ever forget that..."

"We won't forget it," Cindy bit her lip to hold back a sob,

"And we love you guys, too." After she gave Andrew's cheek a final kiss, the human then turned towards Kevin and Monica while Andrew turned to the twins.

As Cindy hugged Kevin good-bye, Brady turned to Monica and sighed, still seeing so much pain in her usually bright eyes. Wrapping her up in a tight hug, he whispered softly to her,

"You know where to find me if you need to talk, little angel, because I understand exactly what you're going through. Just do your best to keep the lines of communication open with Andrew, okay? Don't shut him out, honey, especially not now."

"I'll do my best, Brady," Monica whispered, tears filling her eyes once more,

"You and Cindy are going to be all right…I just have a feeling you will be with time…"

"So will you and Andrew," He replied, pulling away to look into her eyes and seeing doubt there. Winking at her, he added,

"I just have a feeling too."

"I'm going to miss you so much, Andrew," Wendy uttered tearfully as she hugged her friend,

"Please come back as soon as you can."

Giving his human friend a tight squeeze, Andrew held her tightly for a few minutes before releasing her,

"I promise we'll come back and visit; I'll miss you all so much..." As he hugged Angelica close to him as well, he then released both of the twins as he saw his best friend approaching.

"Angel..." Monica whispered miserably as she looked at the teenager and was relieved to see that at least some of the anger towards her appeared to be gone from her blue eyes,

"Angel, I hope that you'll think things through in the coming weeks about forgiving me; I understand how you must feel, but I just pray that you will think about it..."

For the first time in weeks, Monica saw the hint of a grin on the teen's face and she held her breath as Angel nodded her head,

"I'll try really hard, Monica; I can promise you that."

"That's all I can ask for then," Monica replied, waiting to see if Angel would move to hug her. When she didn't, Monica reached for her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before turning away and all but running into Wendy.

"She'll come around, Monica," Wendy said softly, moving to hug the despondent angel tightly,

"Thank you for everything the last few months."

"Give your dad a chance, Wendy," She replied, pulling away and forcing a smile she didn't feel,

"Tell Andrew I'll be outside," She added, seeing him talking to Brady.

As Wendy nodded her head and offered her a sad but reassuring smile, Monica brushed past the small group and headed out the front door and towards Andrew's car. As she reached it, instead of getting inside to wait, the little Irish angel leaned up against it and rested her head in her hands. She let out a deep sigh before looking up at the robins blue sky,

"Father, I know that I have asked for Your forgiveness countless times, but please forgive me for all that I have done wrong on this assignment. Although I know that Andrew has forgiven me...it still hurts to know how much I hurt him as well, and I don't intend on doing that again. Please just bring everyone involved in this assignment peace that only You can give..."

As the angel lowered her auburn head, she felt tears fill her brown eyes once more as she felt the Father's love pour down to her heart and she knew that someday, whenever that may be, things would eventually be all right.

The End

CI and KP


End file.
